| At
JMU, our computational-science program focuses on fluid
dynamics. The motion of fluids holds both
aesthetic and practical fascination for humans. The science of fluid
mechanics provides insight into phenomena as diverse as wave action, ocean
circulation, weather patterns, the destructive power of tornados and
hurricanes, the science of flight, shock waves, the droplet pattern in a
half-empty wine glass, the laminar-turbulent transition of a smoke plume
rising from a cigarette, blood flow in the heart, and the accretion of
galaxies. Because of the complicated nature of the Navier-Stokes equations
that govern fluid motions, prior to the second half of the 20th Century,
fluid dynamicists could rely only upon simplified theories corroborated by
physical experiments to explain and predict fluid-flow phenomena. With the
advent of the digital computer, numerical simulation joined theory and
experiment in the arsenal of scientific techniques that can be brought to
bear in unraveling the mysteries of fluid flow. With continuing advancements in both computer
technology and algorithmic efficiency, computational fluid dynamics has
emerged as a powerful and trustworthy tool for the
design of spacecraft, aircraft, ships, automobiles, biomedical devices,
and much more. In the future, numerical
simulation will become ever more important as an emerging "key
technology." Say the authors of the 1998 SIAM monograph Numerical
Simulation of Fluid Flow: "The numerical simulation of physical phenomena requires
the observations and models of the natural scientist, the technical
expertise of the engineer, the numerical methods of the mathematician, and
the modern techniques and computers of the computer scientist." |
