Supercomputer to unravel the Cosmos!
Have you ever thought of a computer being able to untangle the mysteries of the Universe? In a one-of-its-kind invention, celebrated theoretical physicist Professor Stephen Hawking has launched the most powerful shared-memory supercomputer in Europe christened COSMOS.
Produced by SGI (Silicon Graphics Inc), this supercomputer is expected to unravel the mysteries of the Universe. The COSMOS supercomputer is a part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council DiRAC High Performance Computing facility, which is a national service for UK cosmologists, astronomers, particle physicists, and non-academic users.(Read more)
During the launch of COSMOS, Professor Hawking said, “We have made spectacular advances in cosmology and particle physics. Cosmology is now a precision science, so we need machines like COSMOS to reach out and touch the real universe, to investigate whether our mathematical models are correct”.
He added, “I hope that we will soon find an ultimate theory which, in principle, would enable us to predict everything in the Universe. However, participants at this workshop will be pleased to learn that this will not end our quest for a complete understanding. Even if we do find the ultimate theory, we will still need supercomputers to describe how something as big and complex as the Universe evolves, let alone why humans behave the way they do!” (More about it)
The launch was a part of the Numerical Cosmology 2012 workshop at the Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge. Aided by Intel, the workshop has been successful in roping in leaders in computational cosmology with technological innovators.
What is Numerical Cosmology 2012 workshop?
Flexible in nature, COSMOS’s shared-memory system will not only develop researchers’ capabilities across the United Kingdom but will also ensure their leadership in cosmological research at the international level, according to Professor Paul Shellard, director of the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology.
The COSMOS consortium’s current research programme aims to further the understanding of the origin and structure of our universe, primarily through the scientific exploitation of the cosmic microwave sky. (Read complete story)
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