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Fastest Computer in the World ver. 6
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 IBM has decided to create another supercomputer this year: a machine codenamed Roadrunner. They're designing it in a way that will outrun, by four times, the current fastest computer - BlueGene/L. Well, at least the new one will have a better codename, eh? It's going to be used to ensure that US nuclear weapons stockpile remains safe and reliable. It'll be used for "other" purposes as well, of course, as it'll be 12,000 square feet big.
Roadrunner is a "hybrid" design, much like a hybrid car that runs on both fuel and other resources, this computer will be doing the same. It will use 16,000 conventional supercomputer processors and 16,000 new chips designed for the PS3. Yep, you read it right. The Playstation 3 chip inside a supercomputer.
It's because of this chip that the computer will be using lesser processors than its ancestors. It'll run so fast, it'll be able to achieve petaflop (1,000 trillion calculations per second) speeds compared to the BlueGene/L's teraflop (one trillion calculations per second). So far, Roadrunner has achieved the 280.6 teraflops and probably 367 teraflops if need be. It's like comparing an F-16 to a commercial airplane. Another great idea is that it will be built using off-the-shelf components. Looks like those electronic stores around the area will be sold out most of the time.
How does one eat an elephant? Cut it to pieces, they say. The supercomputer and the data that needs to be processed is so gigantic that it may need to be separated into different packets and units. Once processed, it can then be brought together and merged. However, the problem will be the computer language. Since different parts will be taking on different roles, there might be some programs that may not "talk" well with each other. The makers are currently finding out ways to resolve this problem.
Hopefully, one day these supercomputers can be shrunk to the size of a laptop or cellphone. In the future, we could be buying the latest designs based on petaflops and the like. Remember, that the first computer was as big as a whole room, now they can get as small as a PDA. Until then, we'll give you the latest news from Roadrunner as we get them.
Via BBC
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