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ClearSpeed ahead?

edited October 2003 in Science & Tech
<b>primesuspect thinks our <a href="http://www.short-media.com/article.php?1.255&quot; target="_new">folding@home team</a> would REALLY want some of these...</b>

[blockquote]Startup ClearSpeed Technology on Tuesday is expected to announce a coprocessor for x86-based servers that the company said could help shrink massive clustered systems down into a server chassis or two.

ClearSpeed's 32-bit CS301 coprocessor runs at only 200MHz but outputs up to <b>25.6 gigaflops</b> per processor. The company's chief designers envision the chip perched on a PCI daughtercard, assisting the main CPU with computation-intensive parallel tasks, such as those used in the biotechnology and scientific communities.

The concept is intriguing, though I'm not sure what I think of it just yet. A good friend of mine who's already sold one successful fabless semiconductor start-up had the idea to do exactly this kind of thing for a new startup about two years ago, and I recall thinking that it had potential but it didn't really strike me as the Next Big Thing. Anyway, let's take a closer look at the new chip itself. [/blockquote]
<b><a href="http://arstechnica.com/archive/news/1066197482.html&quot; target="_new">Want some and want them now! - Read the rest @ Ars Technica</a></b>

Comments

  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited October 2003
    I must say that this is a terribly intriguing concept. Married with a PCI Express card and excellent bandwidth throughout, this could seriously increase performance.
  • leishi85leishi85 Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    edited October 2003
    didn't they say that they don't EVEN HAVE A PROTOTYPE yet??
  • SputnikSputnik Worcester, MA
    edited October 2003
    i'm liking the Distributed compting concept that hannibal mentioned, yay for folding if it's as good as it seems!
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited October 2003
    Just when you thought the external math co-processor was a relic of the early-model 486s...
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