Our Vision
Training and Support
Molecular simulation can greatly serve the benchtop experimentalist by aiding in molecular and material screening, hypothesis generation and rigorization, and data visualization. The learning curve for accessing these benefits can be steep. We aim to ease this process by providing workshops, running QA sessions, developing tutorials, and designing educational materials which explain and lead beginners through common simulation techniques and their various software implementations, focusing on the needs of the Triangle communities and bringing them under one banner. We intend to publicly release these materials under open source and/or creative commons licenses so that others outside of the Triangle area may discover and use them.
Collaboration
A network of researchers and enthusiasts within the Triangle will allow collaborations to form around common interests and needs in molecular simulation. For example, many researchers in a certain area may find themselves working around the same limitations in existing software. A network of common needs and diverse talent may allow these researchers to collaboratively develop a plug-in to address the limitations and integrate it into a larger body of open-source code. Other projects might include educational tutorials, hobbyist projects, high-risk or interest driven simulations unlikely to be directly funded, protocol documentation, in addition to standard research projects but through a common channel. The presence of the Society will provide a centralized place to deposit and manage these projects. We envision TriMolS to be a Triangle-centered hub for researchers to find the resources they need to create the best content and highest impact research possible.
Networking and Outreach
Networking within academia and industry will connect needs and talent, improve industry recruitment of talent, and enhance professional development of members. This can be difficult in molecular simulation areas, as talent may be spread thin at the university, and housed in multiple departments. In addition, outreach to the general public concerning molecular simulation is almost non-existent. Possible broad outreach ideas include working with local teachers to provide lesson plans, developing introductory tutorials, providing resources and mentorship to interested high school students, serving local computing clubs, and possibly developing a summer school or short program about molecular simulation.
