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World's most powerful supercomputer gets going

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CIOL Bureau
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GAINESVILLE, USA: Novo-G, a supercomputer which is described by its lead designer as likely the most powerful computer of its kind in the world, became operational at the University of Florida (UF), says the university website.

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A reconfigurable computer, it can rearrange its internal circuitry to suit the task at hand. Applications range from space satellites to research supercomputers, said Alan George, professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of UF’s National Science Foundation Center for High-Performance Reconfigurable Computing, which was founded in 2007.

Traditional computers use so-called “fixed logic devices” to perform a large variety of tasks. On the other hand, special-purpose computers can be built to perform certain tasks very well but are not flexible.

Reconfigurable computers make the best of both worlds as they can rearrange their internal circuitry like Lego blocks, creating the most appropriate architecture for each assignment, George said. As a result, a reconfigurable computer can be from 10 to 100 times faster than other computers of its size while using five to 10 times less energy.

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However, reconfigurable computers remain at the research stage and are not easy to use. And one of the main goals of the NSF Center is to pioneer techniques to make reconfigurable computers more accessible.

“It is very powerful technology, but it is also very complicated technology. We don’t want this important technology to be accessible only to experts,” George was quoted as saying by the website.

UF has three partner universities in its reconfigurable computing center – Brigham Young University, George Washington University and Virginia Tech – as well as about 30 industry and government partners.

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