Internet2 is dishing out four awards this week to teams that have created advanced network applications that are making a difference in research and teaching.

Also: Internet2’s network to get a facelift

The first winners of the Internet2 Driving Exemplary Applications (IDEA) Awards are for:

* The Megaconferences and their spinoffs: Distributed networking project that brings together hundreds of people across the globe in interactive videoconferences supported by H.323, SIP and other technologies. Spinoff megaconferences, such as those for Texas residents and young students, have also proven successful. Robert Dixon from Ohio State University and Jennifer Oxenford from Mid-Atlantic Gigapop in Philadelphia collaborated.

* Transcontinental Persistent Archives Prototype: Research test bed used to address the challenge of protecting and authenticating electronic records. The system serves as a central virtual repository and runs across a variety of underlying storage platforms at sites such as the National Archives and Records Administration, the University of Maryland and the San Diego Supercomputer Center. The system uses the Storage Resource Broker data management technology and is the product of a seven-year research project.

* Interactive Music Education: Involves online access to composers and other music experts for students and other musicians. Technologies used include multicasting and MPEG2 streams. Collaborators include the New World Symphony, Case Western Reserve University, Manhattan School of Music and others.

* Very High Speed Electronic Very Long Baseline Interferometry: Creates a large-scale virtual radio telescope used for astronomy and other purposes.

The awards are being presented at Internet2's Spring Member Meeting in Arlington, Va., which runs through Wednesday. The conference includes sessions on topics such as:

* Bringing The Metropolitan Museum of Art to Alaska;
* Hybrid Optical and Packet Infrastructure (HOPI) Update; and
* Federated Identity Management in Health.

For more information on the session schedule and how to access sessions online, go here.

• For the latest on network-oriented research at university and other labs, go to Network World’s Alpha Doggs blog.