diff --git a/_events/2026/2026-05-testing-talk-series.md b/_events/2026/2026-05-testing-talk-series.md new file mode 100644 index 000000000..11410454a --- /dev/null +++ b/_events/2026/2026-05-testing-talk-series.md @@ -0,0 +1,61 @@ +--- +title: "US-RSE Software Testing Talk Series" +subtitle: +expires: 2026-05-20 +event_date: "May 20, 2026" +layout: event +duration: 60 +repeated: false +category: Software Testing +time: + - - start: 2026-05-20T17:00:00Z + end: 2026-05-20T18:00:00Z +--- + +The Testing working group is happy to announce a new talk on Software +Testing on Wednesday May 20, 1-2 PM EDT. + +Title: **Software testing in the Open Force Field Initiative** + +Presenter: **Matt Thompson** + +### Abstract +Force fields---physics-based models used in molecular +simulations---are central to computational chemistry, but they are +often difficult to use with other software, lack accuracy on chemical +systems of interest, or are not developed openly. The Open Force Field +Initiative is an open and collaborative approach to addressing these +challenges, built on open-source software, publicly accessible data, +and open science. Our primary products are force fields, but we also +ship software to enable their adoption in users' workflows. These +users from academia and industry work in a range of fields including +drug discovery and materials science. In this talk, I will present the +processes the team uses to develop, maintain, and deploy force fields +and research software, monitor deployment and packaging issues, and +manage user support. Finally, I discuss outstanding challenges our +infrastructure and the broader ecosystem, ideas that did not work as +well as expected, and other actionable lessons learned from years of +experience. + +### Biography +Matt is a Senior Research Software Engineer with the [Open Force Field +initiative](https://openforcefield.org/), where he started in March +2020 (and until March 2022 held the title of Software +Scientist). Broadly, he operationalizes research software as part of +developing and maintaining the [OpenFF software +stack](https://github.com/openforcefield) that enables it. + +Previously, he was a PhD candidate and research engineer in the Peter +T. Cummings lab in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular +Engineering at Vanderbilt University, where he received his PhD +in 2019. His research there focused on the use of molecular simulation +to study the fundamental properties of components of next-generation +energy storage devices. Late in his time at Vanderbilt, he also worked +on tools that automate workflows aimed at these and other scientific +questions. His main two projects at Vanderbilt were the FIRST +Center and [MoSDeF](https://mosdef.org/). + +#### Registration details + +To register follow this link: +[Testing Talk Series Registration](https://tennessee.zoom.us/meeting/register/GU3-6ggxRVi_gvfvHoY6Cg)