“A research team from Rice University utilized three supercomputers (TACC’s Stampede 2, Wrangler, and Pittsburg Supercomputing Center’s Bridges system) to see if data on heat waves and cold spells could be predicted by analysis of atmospheric circulation and prior surface temperature. The results of these tests indicated that this deep learning approach is more accurate at predicting extreme weather.”
Podcast: Slingshotting to Exascale
March 6, 2020 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC team looks at the Cray Slingshot interconnect that will power all three of the first Exascale supercomputers in the US. “At the heart of this new interconnect is their innovative 64 port switch that provides a maximum of 200 Gb/s per port and can support Cray’s enhanced Ethernet along with standard Ethernet message passing. It also has advanced congestion control and quality of service modes that ensure that each job gets their right amount of bandwidth.”
Podcast: Tracking the Coronavirus with HPC
February 19, 2020 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC team looks at how supercomputing can help predict and track the progress of the Covid-19 virus. “Shahin also wonders about the economic effect on the tech business as inventories dry up while producers are sidelined by the virus.”
Podcast: AMD to Power New ECMWF Supercomputer for Weather Forecasting
February 7, 2020 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC looks at the new ECMWF supercomputer. “This new system will give them roughly 5x more compute power than their current system. The new box is an Atos BullSequana XH2000 fueled by high-end AMD 7742 Epyc processors, which will be the most powerful weather computer in the world. During the conversation we look at the history of ECMWF vendors, discuss the implications on weather forecasts given the power of this new system and the computational difficulties inherent in weather prediction.”
Podcast: The Trouble with ZFS
January 30, 2020 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC team discuss whether ZFS is ever going to meet its potential. “Henry weighs in on the evolution of ZFS and how his opinion of ZFS has changed over the last decade or so. Both Shahin and Henry feel ZFS is unique and highly useful and that maybe Linus isn’t up on current ZFS capabilities.”
2020 Predictions from Radio Free HPC
January 16, 2020 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC team lays out their tech predictions for 2020. “Henry predicts that we’ll see a RISC-V based supercomputer on the TOP500 list by the end of 2020 – gutsy call on that. This is a double down on a bet that Dan and Henry have, so he’s reinforcing his position. Dan also sees 2020 as the “Year of the FPGA.”
Podcast: The Overhype and Underestimation of Quantum Computing
January 7, 2020 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC team looks at how Quantum Computing is overhyped and underestimated at the same time. “The episode starts out with Henry being cranky. It also ends with Henry being cranky. But between those two events, we discuss quantum computing and Shahin’s trip to the Q2B quantum computing conference in San Jose.”
Radio Free HPC Rings in the New Year
January 1, 2020 by
“It’s become a tradition at Radio Free HPC to celebrate the holidays with a video of the holiday episode. The new logo launches the video: celebrating a truly family style dinner and dreaming big (maybe too creatively, however) as the team exchanges “if-only” gifts!”
CHPC Student Cluster Winners Get Ready to take ISC by Storm
December 22, 2019 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC recaps the recent CHPC National Conference in South Africa. “Now a 5-day conference with two days of workshops as book-ends, multiple tracks and many speakers, and yes, a very exciting Student Cluster Competition, the CHPC National Conference has developed into a very important event in the HPC/AI world. Dan Olds takes us through what he saw, who won, and what we can expect at the competition at ISC in 2020, and just how impressive the whole thing was.”
Radio Free HPC Recaps SC19
December 14, 2019 by
In this podcast, the Radio Free HPC team looks back the “State Fair for Nerds” that was SC19. “At this year’s conference, we not only learned the latest discoveries in our evolving field – but also celebrated the countless ways in which HPC is improving our lives … our communities … our world. So many people worked together to make SC19 possible – more than: 780 volunteers, 370 exhibitors, 1,150 presenters, and a record 13,950 attendees.”
