Massively Parallel Computing: A Sandia Perspective

D. E. Womble, S. S. Dosanjh, B. A. Hendrickson, M. A. Heroux, S. J. Plimpton, J. L. Tomkins, D. S. Greenberg, Parallel Computing, 25, 1853-1876 (1999).

The computing power available to scientists and engineers has increased dramatically in the past decade, due in part to progress in making massively parallel computing practical and available. The expectation for these machines has been great. The reality is that progress has been slower than expected. Nevertheless, massively parallel computing is beginning to realize its potential for enabling significant breakthroughs in science and engineering. This paper provides a perspective on the state of the field, colored by the authors' experiences using large scale parallel machines at Sandia National Laboratories. We address trends in hardware, system software and algorithms, and we also offer our view of the forces shaping the parallel computing industry.

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