computer science

Petascale computing

Petascale computing is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Petascale computing rather than just read about it. In short: Petascale computing refers to high-power computing systems capable of performing at least 1 quadrillion (1015) arithmetic, or floating-point operations per second (FLOPS). (Note: FLOPS is a standard metric for supercomputer performance.) These systems are often called petaflops systems and represent a significant leap from traditional supercomputers in terms of raw performance, enabling them to handle vast datasets…

Key takeaways

Petascale computing belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Petascale computing to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Petascale computing from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Petascale computing refers to high-power computing systems capable of performing at least 1 quadrillion (1015) arithmetic, or floating-point operations per second (FLOPS). (Note: FLOPS is a standard metric for supercomputer performance.) These systems are often called petaflops systems and represent a significant leap from traditional supercomputers in terms of raw performance, enabling them to handle vast datasets and complex computations. Petascale computing typically finds application in large-scale applications like climate and weather modeling, astrophysics simulations, advanced materials design, and realtime medical imaging.

Definition

Floating point operations per second (FLOPS) is one measure of computer performance (including supercomputers). FLOPS can be recorded in different measures of precision, however the standard measure (used by the TOP500 supercomputer list) uses 64 bit (double-precision floating-point format) operations per second using the High Performance LINPACK (HPLinpack) benchmark. The metric typically refers to single computing systems, although it can be used to measure distributed computing systems for comparison. It can be noted that there are alternative precision measures using the LINPACK benchmarks which are not part of the standard metric/definition. It has been recognized that HPLinpack may not be a good general measure of supercomputer utility in real world application, however it is the common standard for performance measurement.

History The petaFLOPS barrier was first broken by the RIKEN MDGRAPE-3 supercomputer in 2006, and then on 16 September 2007 by the distributed computing Folding@home project. IBM's single petascale system, the Roadrunner, entered operation in 2008. The Roadrunner, built by IBM, had a sustained performance of 1.026 petaFLOPS. The Jaguar became the next computer to break the petaFLOPS milestone, later in 2008, and reached a performance of 1.759 petaFLOPS after a 2009 update. In 2020, Fugaku became the fastest supercomputer in the world, reaching 415 petaFLOPS in June 2020. Fugaku later achieved an Rmax of 442 petaFLOPS in November of the same year. In 2022, exascale computing (1018 FLOPS of computational power) overtook petascale computing in terms of power with the development of Frontier, surpassing Fugaku with an Rmax of 1.102 exaFLOPS in June 2022.

Artificial intelligence Modern artificial intelligence (AI) systems require large amounts of computational power to train model parameters. OpenAI employed 25,000 Nvidia A100 GPUs to train GPT-4, using a total of 133 septillion floating-point operations.

See also Exascale computing Computer performance by orders of magnitude Category:Petascale computers Zettascale computing

References

External links Petascale computers: the next supercomputing wave National Science Board Approves Funds for Petascale Computing Systems Massive $208 million petascale computer gets green light Archived 2010-12-26 at the Wayback Machine Much Ado About Petascale Petascale Climate Modeling Heats Up

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Petascale computing

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Petascale computing claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Petascale computing before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Petascale computing ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Petascale computing

In research: Petascale computing appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Petascale computing in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Petascale computing is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Supercomputing, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Petascale computing outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Petascale computing in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Petascale computing means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Petascale computing out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Petascale computing in simple terms?

Why does Petascale computing matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Petascale computing?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Petascale computing.