What is a Supercomputer?
According to Wikipedia, a supercomputer is "a computer with a high level of computational capacity compared to a general-purpose computer." These computers are used in a variety of ways including weather forecasting, climate research, etc (Wikipedia). Currently, China is building a prototype for an even stronger supercomputer that is expected to be completed this year. This computer will be able to "calculate a quintillion (1,000,000,000,000,000,000) calculations per second" (Daily Dot). This supercomputer will be significantly faster than the current the fastest computer, which can complete 93,000 trillion calculations per second. With the large calculation capabilities, this supercomputer will help further advance many fields.
How this relates to Computer Science
This is related to computer science because people have to build and program the supercomputer. Computer scientists have to program the supercomputer in order for it to complete a quintillion calculations per second.
References
1. Daily Dot - "China to reveal prototype 'super supercomputer' by year's end" by Phillip N. Tracy
http://www.dailydot.com/debug/china-exoscale-computer/?utm_content=China%20to%20reveal%20prototype%20%27super%20supercomputer%27%20by%20year%27s%20end&utm_medium=syndication&utm_source=msn&utm_name=msn_syndication
2. Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supercomputer
I really like the simplicity of your topic, yet the wide range of applications super supercomputer has in real. After reading your blog, I got interested in finding out what people use it for. At first, it sounds like something only scientists would use and understand. However, its applications range from automobile safety rankings to meteorology and journalism. I am very much amazed by its applications in our everyday lives. For example, journalists can use software that uses algorithms to spot facts and trends in data and in that way increasing journalists' insights for the data. Also, meteorologists can use it in their everyday analysis to help them identify the sources of pollution and the way it is spread through air. This highly helps in controlling pollution and warning communities of potential damaging effects.
ReplyDeleteThe highlight of your blog though is that all of this is possible because of computer science and its development. And it did indeed open my eyes to all of its applications and INFINITE possibilities computer science offers.
Bibliography:
http://www.information-age.com/5-real-life-applications-supercomputers-you-never-knew-about-123458374/