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Japanese supercomputer becomes world's fastest

Mon Jun 20, 11:29 am ET

TOKYO (AFP) A Japanese supercomputer has become the fastest in the world,

making calculations more than three times faster than a Chinese rival, its

developers said Monday.

The c has achieved 8.162 quadrillion calculations per second, or 8.162

petaflops in computer jargon, according to developers Fujitsu Ltd. and the

state-funded Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, known as RIKEN.

In doing so K Computer overtook China's Tianhe-1A of the National

Supercomputing Centre in Tianjin, which became the world number-one in November

and is capable of operating at 2.566 petaflops.

The K Computer's performance was recognised by the Top500 List of

Supercomputers released on Monday at the 2011 International Supercomputing

Conference in Hamburg, Germany, Fujitsu and RIKEN said in a statement.

It is the first Japanese supercomputer since 2004 to become the world's

fastest, a symbolic moment for a nation proud of its cutting edge technology.

NEC's Earth Simulator was the world's fastest machine between June 2002 and

November 2004.

K Computer's developers say the machine will be powerful enough to tackle

complex calculations relating to climate research and disaster prevention.

"Use of the K computer is expected to have a groundbreaking impact in fields

ranging from global climate research, meteorology, disaster prevention, and

medicine, thereby contributing to the creation of a prosperous and secure

society," the statement added.

K Computer is still being configured and has been assembled since October 2010

at a RIKEN's facility in Kobe, western Japan, where it should be completed by

June 2012, the statement said.

It is made up of 672 computer cabinets currently equipped with of 68,544

computer processing units (CPUs), Fujitsu and RIKEN said in a press release.

When finished, the machine will have more than 80,000 CPUs and be able to

operate at 10 petaflops.

Fujitsu and RIKEN chiefs said in statements that the project, launched in 2006

with a total budget of about 112 billion yen ($1.4 billion), had overcome

supply chain difficulties caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that

devasted the country's northeast Tohoku region.

Fujitsu chairman Michiyoshi Mazuka said he was grateful to "our partners in the

Tohoku region for their commitment to delivering a steady supply of components,

even though they themselves were affected by the disaster."

RIKEN president Ryoji Noyori said: "I very much believe that the strength and

perseverance that was demonstrated during this project will also make possible

the recovery of the devastated Tohoku region."

Noyori, the 2001 Nobel laureate in chemistry, told a news conference later: "I

am glad because the world number-one spot, by such an overwhelming margin, has

proven that our country's industrial technology remains sound."

"After all, we must aim for the top in research."

The project's budget was slashed by 11 billion yen in late 2009 under a

belt-tightening drive by the centre-left government.

A minister in charge of administrative reform asked at that time: "What is the

reason for seeking to be the world number one? Can't you make do with second

place?"

But the K Computer may find it hard to survive intensifying competition as a

1,000-petaflops supercomputer is under consideration in the United States while

China continues to invest heavily in supercomputer development, the Yomiuri

newspaper said.