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Supercomputer facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Cray 2 Arts et Metiers dsc03940
The Cray-2, the world's fastest supercomputer from 1985 to 1989

A supercomputer is a computer with great speed and memory. This kind of computer can do jobs faster than any other computer of its generation. They are usually thousands of times faster than ordinary personal computers made at that time. Supercomputers can do arithmetic jobs very fast, so they are used for weather forecasting, code-breaking, genetic analysis and other jobs that need many calculations. When new computers of all classes become more powerful, new ordinary computers are made with powers that only supercomputers had in the past, while new supercomputers continue to outclass them.

Electrical engineers make supercomputers that link many thousands of microprocessors.

Types

Supercomputer types include: shared memory, distributed memory and array. Supercomputers with shared memory are developed by using a parallel computing and pipelining concept. Supercomputers with distributed memory consist of many (about 100~10000) nodes. CRAY series of CRAYRESERCH and VP 2400/40, NEC의 SX-3 of HUCIS are shared memory types. nCube 3, iPSC/860, AP 1000, NCR 3700, Paragon XP/S, CM-5 are distributed memory types.

History

Array type computer ILIAC started at 1972 and since that, CF-11, CM-2, Mas Par MP-2(that has array type) is developed. Lately, array type supercomputer is beginning to make a mark. And movements that use physically separated memory like one shared memory bring T3D, KSR1, and Tera Computer.

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See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Supercomputadora para niños

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