computer science

Tera-10

Tera-10 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 Tera-10 rather than just read about it. In short: TERA-10 is a supercomputer built by Bull SA for the French Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique, (Atomic Energy Commission). TERA-10 was ranked 142nd on the TOP500 list in 2010.

Key takeaways

Tera-10 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 Tera-10 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Tera-10 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

TERA-10 is a supercomputer built by Bull SA for the French Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique, (Atomic Energy Commission). TERA-10 was ranked 142nd on the TOP500 list in 2010. By 2015 it had dropped off the bottom of the list. During its operational period, it ran at 52.84 teraFLOPs (52.84 trillion floating-point calculations per second) using nearly 10,000 processor cores (in about 4800 dual-core processors). It runs the Linux operating system, with an SMP kernel specially modified to handle very large symmetric clusters (it was cadenced by an 8-processors central system during its main use phase). Its main application is the simulation of atomic experiences and the maintenance of the French nuclear defence force, using the results of true nuclear tests (between 1956 and 1995, most of them in the French Nuclear Test Plant in the Pacific) and the new results obtained from the LMJ (Laser Mega-Joule) built in continental France.

Evolution Evolution TERA-10 represented the end of its generation's evolution. It was succeeded by the next generation, Tera-100, which reached about 1 petaFLOPS. The Tera-100 utilizes processors with more internal cores and a new central scheduling system, which allows asymmetric operation on a variable number of processors. This design was implemented for easier upgrades, lower maintenance cost, and more experiences requiring different computing scales, without having to rebuild the whole cluster.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Tera-10

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Tera-10 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 Tera-10 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 Tera-10 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 Tera-10

In research: Tera-10 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 Tera-10 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: Tera-10 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Computer hardware stubs, Supercomputers, Supercomputing in Europe, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Tera-10 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 Tera-10 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Tera-10 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 Tera-10 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Tera-10 in simple terms?

TERA-10 is a supercomputer built by Bull SA for the French Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique, (Atomic Energy Commission). TERA-10 was ranked 142nd on the TOP500 list in 2010.

Why does Tera-10 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 Tera-10?

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 Tera-10.