{"video_id":"unDqlQA9rU4","title":"Supercomputers as Fast As Possible","channel":"Techquickie","show":"Techquickie","published_at":"2015-05-07T14:58:16Z","duration_s":269,"segments":[{"start_s":0.32,"end_s":8.4,"text":"What makes a computer super? Is it the ability to fly? Is it laser eyes?","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":5.68,"end_s":12.8,"text":"Perhaps invulnerability to bolts? Nah, man. This is computers we're talking","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":9.84,"end_s":17.279,"text":"about. They're super fast and great for complex simulations, crypt analysis,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":15.36,"end_s":21.279,"text":"resource exploration, weather forecasting, and all kinds of amazing","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":19.119,"end_s":25.119,"text":"stuff. But first, a bit of history. According to the authoritative source on","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":23.439,"end_s":30.0,"text":"absolutely everything, the first computer to earn the super prefix was","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":27.519,"end_s":34.399,"text":"designed by Seymour Cray and released in 1964.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":31.519,"end_s":38.64,"text":"It was about 10 times faster than all other computers at the time. And CDC,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":36.88,"end_s":44.559,"text":"the company for which Cray worked before leaving to start his own, sold a hundred","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":40.559,"end_s":47.12,"text":"of them at $8 million each. Now early","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":44.559,"end_s":51.84,"text":"supercomputers well for about 30 years actually I guess relied on designs with","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":49.12,"end_s":56.559,"text":"just a few powerful specialized processing cores but in order to keep up","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":54.16,"end_s":62.64,"text":"with the everinccreasing demand for more power the approach has shifted starting","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":59.039,"end_s":64.32,"text":"in the '90s towards many offtheshelf","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":62.64,"end_s":69.119,"text":"processing cores with modern supercomputers containing even hundreds","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":66.479,"end_s":73.6,"text":"of thousands of processing cores some of them traditional CPUs and some of them","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":71.36,"end_s":78.0,"text":"actually GPUs which can be very efficient for certain workloads. Now,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":75.6,"end_s":84.159,"text":"hold on a second there, Lionus question. CPUs and GPUs in these things, just like","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":80.96,"end_s":86.56,"text":"my gaming rig. Yes, but on a much larger","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":84.159,"end_s":91.52,"text":"scale. The Titan supercomput has over 18,000","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":88.159,"end_s":94.88,"text":"16 coropteron processors and over 18,000","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":91.52,"end_s":97.2,"text":"Tesla K20X GPUs. All right, then Lionus.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":94.88,"end_s":102.479,"text":"Two more questions. How do they power and cool that sucker? And can it run","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":100.079,"end_s":107.52,"text":"Crisis? Power and cooling are pretty much handled by the system designer on a","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":104.56,"end_s":112.479,"text":"case-byase basis. But the main theme is with as little waste as possible because","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":109.52,"end_s":117.119,"text":"a supercomput can consume as much power as thousands of individual homes and","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":114.88,"end_s":122.399,"text":"cost millions of dollars a year to operate. Titan uses 480 volt electrical","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":120.399,"end_s":127.119,"text":"power to allow thinner gauge cables, saving about a million dollars in copper","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":124.399,"end_s":131.28,"text":"during construction. The IBM Aquazar system actually recycles the water","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":129.44,"end_s":136.319,"text":"cooling fluid that's used to cool the processors to heat buildings. And Intel","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":134.08,"end_s":141.28,"text":"and 3M showed off an inert fluid submersion concept earlier this year","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":138.16,"end_s":143.84,"text":"that looks bananas. As for Crisis, very","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":141.28,"end_s":148.08,"text":"funny, but no. Most supercomputers run Linux-based operating systems that are","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":145.599,"end_s":152.48,"text":"heavily customized to best leverage the architecture of their own exact hardware","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":150.16,"end_s":158.239,"text":"design and to keep intersystem communication as fast as possible for","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":155.76,"end_s":164.08,"text":"optimal efficiency. This is what allows these extravagant designs to work so","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":161.2,"end_s":169.12,"text":"cohesively to complete a single task and unlock new computing paradigms that were","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":166.56,"end_s":174.0,"text":"impossible or at least impractical with previous hardware. But high-speed","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":172.16,"end_s":178.64,"text":"light-based interconnects between ginormous racks of modules isn't the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":176.4,"end_s":182.8,"text":"only way to achieve supercomputer level performance, usually measured in flops","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":180.959,"end_s":187.2,"text":"or floatingoint operations per second with the limpact benchmark. If your work","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":185.36,"end_s":192.4,"text":"can be broken up into small chunks to be crunched as part of a larger project,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":189.44,"end_s":197.76,"text":"then distributed or grid computing is another option where each processor","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":194.72,"end_s":200.08,"text":"might be in a laptop or even a phone","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":197.76,"end_s":204.08,"text":"belonging to an individual that calculates everything and then submits","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":201.84,"end_s":208.239,"text":"the results back to a central system. This is how volunteer projects like","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":206.0,"end_s":212.08,"text":"folding at home, which allows regular Joe Schmoes to contribute to protein","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":210.159,"end_s":216.64,"text":"folding research for Stanford University work. And all it costs for each person","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":214.4,"end_s":221.44,"text":"is a few bucks on their monthly electric bill. Speaking of your electric bill,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":219.12,"end_s":225.2,"text":"it's bound to go up if you sign up for dollarshaveclub.com.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":222.959,"end_s":229.599,"text":"Because instead of going outside and trekking through the snow to get fresh,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":227.519,"end_s":234.48,"text":"highquality razors every month, your postman can do that crap for you while","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":231.599,"end_s":238.159,"text":"you sit inside and watch TV, play games, or generally don't have to leave the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":236.239,"end_s":241.76,"text":"house. Dollar Shave Club service starts at just a few bucks a month. And aside","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":240.0,"end_s":245.68,"text":"from great razors, they've got their one wipe Charlie's peppermint scented butt","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":243.36,"end_s":250.319,"text":"wipes for men or women, I guess, and Dr. Carver shave butter and aftershave for","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":248.4,"end_s":253.519,"text":"the best possible hair removal experience. Head over to","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":251.599,"end_s":258.0,"text":"dollarshaveclub.com/lininus to join the club and start shaving time","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":255.76,"end_s":260.479,"text":"and shaving money. Guys, thanks for watching. Like this video if you liked","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":259.04,"end_s":265.04,"text":"it. Dislike it if you disliked it. Leave a comment letting me know if you have suggestions for future fastest possibles","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":262.88,"end_s":270.72,"text":"just like this one. And as always, don't forget to share the video and subscribe","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":267.12,"end_s":270.72,"text":"and all that good youtuby","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0}],"full_text":"What makes a computer super? Is it the ability to fly? Is it laser eyes? Perhaps invulnerability to bolts? Nah, man. This is computers we're talking about. They're super fast and great for complex simulations, crypt analysis, resource exploration, weather forecasting, and all kinds of amazing stuff. But first, a bit of history. According to the authoritative source on absolutely everything, the first computer to earn the super prefix was designed by Seymour Cray and released in 1964. It was about 10 times faster than all other computers at the time. And CDC, the company for which Cray worked before leaving to start his own, sold a hundred of them at $8 million each. Now early supercomputers well for about 30 years actually I guess relied on designs with just a few powerful specialized processing cores but in order to keep up with the everinccreasing demand for more power the approach has shifted starting in the '90s towards many offtheshelf processing cores with modern supercomputers containing even hundreds of thousands of processing cores some of them traditional CPUs and some of them actually GPUs which can be very efficient for certain workloads. Now, hold on a second there, Lionus question. CPUs and GPUs in these things, just like my gaming rig. Yes, but on a much larger scale. The Titan supercomput has over 18,000 16 coropteron processors and over 18,000 Tesla K20X GPUs. All right, then Lionus. Two more questions. How do they power and cool that sucker? And can it run Crisis? Power and cooling are pretty much handled by the system designer on a case-byase basis. But the main theme is with as little waste as possible because a supercomput can consume as much power as thousands of individual homes and cost millions of dollars a year to operate. Titan uses 480 volt electrical power to allow thinner gauge cables, saving about a million dollars in copper during construction. The IBM Aquazar system actually recycles the water cooling fluid that's used to cool the processors to heat buildings. And Intel and 3M showed off an inert fluid submersion concept earlier this year that looks bananas. As for Crisis, very funny, but no. Most supercomputers run Linux-based operating systems that are heavily customized to best leverage the architecture of their own exact hardware design and to keep intersystem communication as fast as possible for optimal efficiency. This is what allows these extravagant designs to work so cohesively to complete a single task and unlock new computing paradigms that were impossible or at least impractical with previous hardware. But high-speed light-based interconnects between ginormous racks of modules isn't the only way to achieve supercomputer level performance, usually measured in flops or floatingoint operations per second with the limpact benchmark. If your work can be broken up into small chunks to be crunched as part of a larger project, then distributed or grid computing is another option where each processor might be in a laptop or even a phone belonging to an individual that calculates everything and then submits the results back to a central system. This is how volunteer projects like folding at home, which allows regular Joe Schmoes to contribute to protein folding research for Stanford University work. And all it costs for each person is a few bucks on their monthly electric bill. Speaking of your electric bill, it's bound to go up if you sign up for dollarshaveclub.com. Because instead of going outside and trekking through the snow to get fresh, highquality razors every month, your postman can do that crap for you while you sit inside and watch TV, play games, or generally don't have to leave the house. Dollar Shave Club service starts at just a few bucks a month. And aside from great razors, they've got their one wipe Charlie's peppermint scented butt wipes for men or women, I guess, and Dr. Carver shave butter and aftershave for the best possible hair removal experience. Head over to dollarshaveclub.com/lininus to join the club and start shaving time and shaving money. Guys, thanks for watching. Like this video if you liked it. Dislike it if you disliked it. Leave a comment letting me know if you have suggestions for future fastest possibles just like this one. And as always, don't forget to share the video and subscribe and all that good youtuby"}