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DARPA Wants a 19" Super-Efficient Supercomputer

Posted by timothy on from the as-do-we-all dept.

coondoggie writes "If you can squish all the processing power of, say, an IBM Roadrunner supercomputer inside a 19-inch box and make it run on about 60 kilowatts of electricity, the government wants to talk to you. The extreme scientists at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency this week issued a call for research that might develop a super-small, super-efficient super beast of a computer. Specifically, DARPA's desires for Ubiquitous High Performance Computing (UHPC) will require a new system-wide technology approach including hardware and software co-design to minimize energy dissipation per operation and maximize energy efficiency, with a 50GFLOPS per watt goal."

5 of 200 comments (clear)

  1. No problem by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Just stick a human brain in a bucket. It's small, quiet, cool and just feed it a Cheeto every once in a while to keep it running.

    1. Re:No problem by oneirophrenos · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Just stick a human brain in a bucket. It's small, quiet, cool and just feed it a Cheeto every once in a while to keep it running.

      And since the human brain has a computational power of 100 petaflops at 20 watts, it'd well exceed DARPA's requirements.

  2. 19" tower and space elevator in one by davidwr · · Score: 5, Funny

    Two! Two! Two projects in one!

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    Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
  3. Re:oblig by Kratisto · · Score: 5, Funny

    Grendel wouldn't stand a chance!

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    Conscience is the inner voice which warns us that someone may be looking.
  4. Re:Yeah sure by TCM · · Score: 5, Funny

    19 inch box?

    They didn't say how high.

    In other news, progress on a space elevator has been confirmed. Curiously, it's 19 inch wide.

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