FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Learn more about NCSA through a list of frequently asked questions The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) is a hub of transdisciplinary research and digital scholarship where University of Illinois faculty, staff, and students, and collaborators from around the globe, unite to address research grand challenges for the benefit of science and society. Current research focus areas include digital agriculture, bio and health sciences, earth and environment, astronomy, plus many more. The Center also provides integrated cyberinfrastructure—computing, software, data, networking, and visualization resources and expertise that are essential to the work of scientists, engineers, and scholars at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and across the country. NCSA is also an engine of economic impact for the state and the nation, helping companies address computing and data challenges and providing hands-on training for undergraduate and graduate students and post-docs. Bill Gropp Dr. William "Bill" Gropp is NCSA Director and Chief Scientist, and the Paul and Cynthia Saylor Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. [Director Gropp's full bio] Established in 1986 as one of the original sites of the National Science Foundation's Supercomputer Centers Program, NCSA is supported by the state of Illinois, the University of Illinois, the National Science Foundation, and grants from other federal agencies.