1、1Fastest Supercomputer in ChinaTHE latest TOP500 supercomputer list was released during the International Supercomputing Conference (ISC) last November in Portland, Oregon of the United States. This list ranks and details the 500 (non-distributed) most powerful computer systems in the world. Tianhe-
2、1, Chinas fastest supercomputer, came in fifth, a record ranking amid Asian countries. The Tianhes peak performance reaches up to 1.206 Petaflops, and it runs at 563.1 Teraflops (1,000 TFLOP equal one PFLOP) on the Linpack benchmark, an internationally recognized method to measure a supercomputers r
3、eal performance in practical use based on a systems floating-point computational power. A single-days task load for Tianhe-1 might take a mainstream dual-core personal computer 160 years to complete, working non-stop ?C if it could even hold up that long. In terms of memory capacity, Tianhe-1 is equ
4、ivalent to four national libraries, each with a storage capacity of 27 million volumes. Tianhe-1 Backstory 2A supercomputer consists of hundreds or even thousands of processors, which enable it to perform tasks of a size or complexity that no other single computer can. It is known for being the most
5、 capable and efficient with the largest memory capacity in the computer family. The Petaflop used to be the benchmark for the process of improving the calculating speed of a supercomputer. The United States, for example, initiated a project for developing the Petaflop ability as early as the 1990s,
6、but was unable to achieve it until 2007. As of November 2009 the fastest supercomputer in the world is the Cray XT5 Jaguar system based at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the U.S. with an experimental performance of 1.759 Petaflops and peak performance that reaches 2.331 Petaflops. Tianhe-1, su
7、ccessfully went into operation in October 2009, allowing China to become the second country with the capacity to produce a Petacomputer. The system cost around RMB 600 million to build, and was jointly financed by the National University of Defense Technology (NUDT) and the Tianjin Binhai New Area,
8、a major economic development zone centered in the northern port city of Tianjin. 3Compared to its counterparts in foreign countries, Tianhe-1 features a state-of-the-art combination of CPU and GPU. GPU, aka graphic processing unit, is an accelerator that helps the computer run faster. Normally, howe
9、ver, only 20 percent of its capacity can be developed. Tianhe-1 increased its efficiency to 70 percent. Overseas GPU producers, impressed by the machines achievements, clamored to cooperate with the Tianhe-1 researchers. Zhou Xingming, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), introdu
10、ced a user-friendly interface and menu, along with full mouse control in order to create a more ergonomic operating experience. More importantly, Tianhe-1, as a standardized supercomputer, is entirely compatible with most applications across all fields. For the development of such technology, secrec
11、y is always a concern. The data and production information of different users are strictly separated; even the systems administrator does not have full access. In other words, users can only gain access to their own data, somewhat like renting a safety deposit box in a bank. Tianhe-1 will be transpo
12、rted to its new home in Tianjin Binhai New Area by the end of 2010. The 155-ton system, with 4103 refrigerator-like cabinets, will fill an area of nearly 1,000 square meters. It is expected to perform the tasks of processing seismic data for petroleum exploration, conducting bio-pharmaceutical compu
13、ting as well as aiding in the design of aerospace vehicles. From Yinhe-1 to Tianhe-1 In 1983 the NUDT successfully developed Yinhe-1, Chinas first-generation supercomputer with a speed of 100 million operations per second. China became the third nation to develop a supercomputer, following the U.S.
14、and Japan. Restricted by technical conditions, every solder joint in its circuit boards had to be welded by hand; hundreds of thousands of electric wires were connected by hand as well, which had to be repeatedly checked for security concerns. Following Yinhe-1, Shuguang-4000A made the list of the w
15、orld Top 10 supercomputers in 2004, a milestone in the history of Chinas supercomputer development. In June 2008 Shuguang-5000A again ranked among the Top 10. This feat garnered praise from the New York Times, which touted Chinas entrance into the top levels of the global high-performance computer i
16、ndustry. 5A widely accepted point of view was that it was a qualitative change for a supercomputer to increase its calculating speed from 100 Teraflops to a Petaflop. It could not be realized by merely expanding scale but needed improvments in overall systematic construction. Therefore, Tianhe-1 pro
17、ves to be a great leap forward in technological innovation. Preliminary research and development plans were set forth in 2005, and engineering blueprints began in 2008. The R with every second seeing around US $180 million change hands. Only supercomputers can guarantee these transactions will run s
18、moothly. The term supercomputer itself is rather fluid, and todays supercomputer tends to become tomorrows ordinary computer. Dou Wenhua, professor with the NUDT, said the current supporting technology is semiconductor technology, while in the future it will utilize nanometer or quantum-computing technology. When quantum computer is developed, everyone will be able to have his or her very own portable supercomputer.
