Understanding Supercomputing

* Another volume in the popular Scientific American series, this book delves into the mystery of the supercomputer.

Anyone alive in the latter 20th century is familiar with computers and the concept of working via these silicon-chip-driven modern wonders. A typical handheld computing device today has more computing power than a 1960s computer that would have filled an entire room. In today's world, computing size equals speed: the smaller the faster. With computing speed nearly doubling every 18 months, today's computing power is more than 100 million times that of a computer in 1970. What does the future hold for computers and their ever-growing power. In UNDERSTANDING SUPERCOMPUTING, you'll discover what constitutes a 'supercomputer', how the super-computers of today function, how you can make your own computer into a super machine - it's a matter of networking - and what tomorrow holds in store for computer usage in terms of hardware, software and everyday applications.