SGI's Molecule Supercomputer Concept Packs 10,000 Atom Processors
Posted 11/20/08 at 05:48:24 PM | by Andy Salisbury

While Intel’s Atom processor is meant for low-power demand machines, such as netbooks, it’s found a new use with a not-so-likely candidate – a supercomputer.
Silicon Graphics (SGI) has started exhibiting a new concept for a supercomputer that could pack almost 10,000 Intel Atom processors into one rack. SGI is planning to name it the Molecule.
The Molecule could reportedly offer the horsepower and memory bandwidth of more than 750 high-end desktop PCs, and consume only half the power. It would also occupy a meager 1.4 percent of the physical space.
Image Credit: SGI
Folding@home? No thank you.
Submitted by Digital-Storm on Thu, 2008-11-20 19:26
Folding@home? No thank you. That project hasnt found anything, and to be honest, I do not think it will.
And I should believe you because you published....what?
Submitted by bloodgain on Fri, 2008-11-21 09:11
"Hasn't found anything", huh?
http://folding.stanford.edu/English/Papers
Granted, some of that is research on improving folding and computation, which themselves are useful to Computer Science. Some of that research, however, has implications on Biology and definitely Chemistry. Just because you don't understand the impact doesn't meant there isn't any.
"Curing cancer" is not the only meaningful discovery that can be achieved, and major discoveries sometimes take decades and entire careers to make. Given that the Folding project has only been running for 8 years, and personal computing has only recently broken the fast multi-core barrier, I'd say they're doing pretty good.
I'm thinking.. Folding@Home!
Submitted by wolf17 on Thu, 2008-11-20 18:05
I'm thinking.. Folding@Home! :)
I'll take two!
Submitted by FrancesTheMute on Thu, 2008-11-20 18:05
I'll take two!









