Intel Demos 80 Core Teraflop Chip

zippyjuan · 02-13-2007, 12:56 AM

Somebody else asked about this a while ago, but Intel made the formal announcement today:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6354225.stm

Quote:

Teraflop chip hints at the future

A chip with 80 processing cores and capable of more than a trillion calculations per second (teraflop) has been unveiled by Intel.
The Teraflop chip is not a commercial release but could point the way to more powerful processors, said the firm.

The chip achieves performance on a piece of silicon no bigger than a fingernail that 11 years ago required a machine with 10,000 chips inside it.

The challenge is to find a way to program the many cores simultaneously.

Current desktop machines have up to four separate cores, while the Cell processor inside the PlayStation 3 has eight (seven of them useable). Each core is effectively a programmable chip in its own right.

But to take advantage of the extra processing power, programmers need to gives instructions to each core that work in parallel with one another.

There are already specialist chips with multiple cores - such as those used in router hardware and graphics cards - but Dr Mark Bull, at the Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre, said multi-core chips were forcing a sea-change in the programming of desktop applications.

...the same computing power required 2,000 square feet

"It's not too difficult to find two or four independent things you can do concurrently, finding 80 or more things is more difficult, especially for desktop applications.

"It is going to require quite a revolution in software programming.

"Massive parallelism has been the preserve of the minority - a few people doing high-performance scientific computing.

"But that sort of thing is going to have to find its way into the mainstream."

The first time teraflop performance was achieved was 11 years on the ASCI Red Supercomputer built by Intel for the Sandia National Laboratory.

That machine took up more than 2,000 square feet, was powered by almost 10,000 Pentium Pro processors, and consumed more than 500 kilowatts of electricity.

"Our researchers have achieved a wonderful and key milestone in terms of being able to drive multi-core and parallel computing performance forward," said Justin Rattner, Intel Senior Fellow and chief technology officer.

"It points the way to the near future when teraflops-capable designs will be commonplace and reshape what we can all expect from our computers and the internet at home and in the office."

The Teraflop chip uses less electricity than many current high-end processors, making the design attractive for use in home computers.

It consumes 62 watts, and the cores can power on and off independently, making it more energy efficient.

Intel says that commercial spin-offs of the chip could see it being used in high-definition entertainment PCs, servers and handheld devices.

Possible uses include artificial intelligence, instant video communications, photo-realistic games and real-time speech recognition, said the firm.

Prngr44 · 02-13-2007, 08:15 AM

ShawnLee · 02-13-2007, 07:31 PM

Hmm... If I could have just 4, maybe 8, at best 16 of those chips...

Something tells me that in five to ten years we'll be looking back at this article thinking, "Hmm, only eighty! Why was that so mind boggling back then?"

Airencracken · 02-13-2007, 07:57 PM

Yeah but does the software exist to take advantage of all that horsepower? I seriously doubt it since dual-core procs are only starting to get support.

shocky123 · 02-13-2007, 08:24 PM

I've read 265Watts/chip when its running at full speed, where did they come up with 62 watts?

~K

zippyjuan · 02-13-2007, 08:58 PM

Maybe that is peak vs average electricity consumption?

shocky123 · 02-14-2007, 09:46 PM

That was clocked at 5.8Ghz...

And for the record, this is 80 non-general purpose cores, you could never (not with todays software) run an operating system on any one of these cores. However, there is some interesting research being done, and I've attended several conference talks suggesting that the day when special purpose cores can be used to run general purpose things like operating systems is in the near future.

In the same context... G80 - ( GeForce 8800GTX ) has 128 'cores'

~Kyle

02-13-2007, 07:57 PM	#4
Airencracken Admiral Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: California Posts: 6,681	Yeah but does the software exist to take advantage of all that horsepower? I seriously doubt it since dual-core procs are only starting to get support. __________________ "I remember my first orgasm, I just wish someone was there to share it with me..."11-05-2003 05:33 AM - Topane They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. - Benjamin Franklin Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, & the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opiate of the masses. - Karl Marx Hell is other people - Jean-Paul Sartre

02-13-2007, 08:24 PM	#5
shocky123 Lieutenant Commander Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Ames, Iowa Posts: 828	I've read 265Watts/chip when its running at full speed, where did they come up with 62 watts? ~K __________________ "me awaits onslaught of estrogen fury." -CornMonkey "5. When your friend dates a woman that is absolutely terrible for him, and she's wrecking his life, it's your duty to openly hate her, and point out how evil she is." -ialsohaveadream

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

02-13-2007, 08:15 AM	#2
Prngr44 Rear Admiral Lower Half Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: St. Louis Posts: 2,620

02-13-2007, 08:58 PM	#6
zippyjuan Picture of the Day Guru Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Sunny San Diego Posts: 8,756	Maybe that is peak vs average electricity consumption?

02-14-2007, 09:46 PM	#7
shocky123 Lieutenant Commander Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Ames, Iowa Posts: 828	That was clocked at 5.8Ghz... And for the record, this is 80 non-general purpose cores, you could never (not with todays software) run an operating system on any one of these cores. However, there is some interesting research being done, and I've attended several conference talks suggesting that the day when special purpose cores can be used to run general purpose things like operating systems is in the near future. In the same context... G80 - ( GeForce 8800GTX ) has 128 'cores' ~Kyle

User Name
Password
Remember Me?