Algorithms for concurrent processors

MAY 01, 1984

A few general techniques allow many small computers to work together efficiently and attack computationally demanding problems in fields ranging from aerodynamics to astrophysics.

DOI: 10.1063/1.2916241

Geoffrey C. Fox

Steve W. Otto

We are on the verge of a revolution in computing, spawned by advances in computer technology. Progress in very‐large‐scale integration is leading not so much to faster computers, but to much less expensive and much smaller computers—computers contained on a few chips. These machines, whose cost‐effectiveness is expected to be staggering, will make it practical to build very‐high‐performance computers, or “supercomputers,” consisting of very many small computers combined to form a single concurrent processor.

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References

1. C. Seitz, J. Matisoo this issue, page 38.
2. C. A. Mead, L. A. Conway, Introduction to VLSI Systems, Addison‐Wesley, Reading, Mass. (1980), chapter 8;
C. Seitz, Proceedings of the MIT Conference on Advanced Research in VLSI, Artech House, Dedham, Mass. (1982).
3. A general reference for algorithms for parallel processors is H. T. Kung, Advances in Computers, volume 19, Academic, New York (1980), page 65.
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5. E. BrooksIII, G. Fox, S. Otto, M. Randeria, W. Athas, E. DeBenedictis, M. Newton, C. Seitz, Nucl. Phys. B220 [FS8], 383 (1983); https://doi.org/NUPBBO
E. Brooks III, G. Fox, R. Gupta, O. Martin, S. Otto, E. DeBenedictis, Caltech preprint CALT‐68‐867 (1981).
6. R. Pearson, J. Richardson, D. Toussaint, University of California, Santa Barbara, Institute for Theoretical Physics preprint number NSF‐ITP‐81‐139 (1981).
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8. J. D. Stack, Phys. Rev. D 27, 412 (1983); https://doi.org/PRVDAQ
N. Isgur, G. Karl, PHYSICS TODAY, November 1983, page 36.
9. E. Brooks III, G. Fox, M. Johnson, S. Otto, J. Stack, P. Stolorz, W. Athas, E. DeBenedictis, R. Faucette, C. Seitz, submitted to Phys. Rev. Lett., available as Caltech preprint CALT‐68‐1112;
S. Otto, J. Stack, Caltech preprint CALT‐68‐1113.
10. G. Fox, Caltech preprints CALT‐68‐939 and CALT‐68‐986.
11. E. O. Bingham, The Fast Fourier Transform, Prentice‐Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey (1974).
12. R. W. Hockney, C. R. Jesshope, Parallel Computers, Adam Hilger, Bristol, England (1981).

More about the authors

Geoffrey C. Fox, California Institute of Technology.

Steve W. Otto, California Institute of Technology.