As technology advances, so do our capacities and ability to solve the world’s most pressing problems. From climate change to privacy protection, technology has a significant impact on our lives. You may believe that humans are alone in their calculations and studies, but you may be startled to learn that we are not.
At the cutting edge of everything, we work alongside machines known as supercomputers.
The Fugaku Supercomputer: What Is It? Who Created It?
A supercomputer, as the name implies, is a more advanced and powerful version of the general-purpose computers we use on a daily basis. They are capable of performing billions of operations per second and can create accurate forecasts to assist humans. This gets us to Fugaku, the fastest supercomputer in the world.
Fugaku, named after the great Mount Fuji, was a collaboration between RIKEN and Fujitsu and was developed by the RIKEN Center for Computational Science in Japan. The supercomputer made its public debut in 2020 and has since maintained its position as the world’s fastest supercomputer. It has made significant contributions to research in a variety of sectors and will continue to do so for an extended period of time. Let us examine Fugaku in greater detail and discover more about her.
1. Supercomputers Are Designed to Solve the Planet’s Most Difficult Problems
Supercomputers are designed to provide accurate forecasts about the future of the world. Whether it’s stock analysis or detailed cancer detection, a supercomputer is supposed to provide more precise forecasts through precise modeling, thereby assisting us in living better lives.
Fugaku’s design philosophy takes this ambition for improvement to a higher level and addresses global issues. Its sole mission is to address the world’s greatest concerns, with a particular emphasis on one global issue: climate change. Fugaku’s most significant difficulty is effectively forecasting climate change based on carbon dioxide emissions and the resulting effect on the global population.
2. Fugaku Can Perform More Than 442 Quadrillion Calculations Per Second
The performance of supercomputers is quantified in terms of PFLOPs, which equals one quadrillion floating-point operations per second. Fugaku is capable of performing over 442 PFLOPs in a single second (as opposed to your Xbox or PlayStation, which measures in TFLOPS). It is three times quicker than the second-ranked Summit system, a computer constructed by the United States‘ Oak Ridge National Laboratory that averages 148 PFLOPs.
Fugaku has topped the Top500 benchmark test for the last three terms, which calculates the machine’s raw speeds, making it the fastest machine on the planet. In June 2021, the 57th Top500 results were announced, with Fugaku retaining the top rank.
3. Fugaku Is the World’s First Supercomputer to Take the Top Spot in All Four Top500 Categories
Fugaku Is the World’s First Supercomputer to Take the Top Spot in All Four Top500 Categories Fugaku was the first supercomputer to win the Top500 in all four categories. Through a series of specialized tests, the Top500 project ranks and details the world’s 500 most powerful non-distributed computer systems. The Top500 is divided into four major categories: raw computational performance, big data processing, deep learning using AI, and practical simulation computations. Due to the fact that supercomputers are domain-specific, it is an incredible feat to dominate all categories.
Apart from the Top500, Fugaku swept the other supercomputer rankings. It won the HPCG, which evaluates supercomputers running real-world applications, the HPL-AI, which evaluates supercomputers running artificial intelligence applications, and the Graph 500, which evaluates systems that handle data-intensive workloads. This was a historic milestone since it was the first time in history that the same supercomputer was ranked No. 1 on the Top500, HPCG, and Graph500 all at the same time.
4. Fugaku Developed an Artificial Intelligence-Based Tsunami Simulation Model
Fugaku Developed an Artificial Intelligence-Based Tsunami Simulation Model By forecasting natural disasters and monitoring climate change, we can act much more quickly. For instance, the International Research Institute of Disaster Science at Tohoku University in Japan, in collaboration with several other institutes, uses Fugaku to develop AI models for near-real-time tsunami flooding prediction in coastal areas.
The model’s major accomplishment was that it could be run extremely easily on standard PCs. Previously, real-time flood prediction systems required supercomputers to operate, which makes the Fugaku-trained model significantly more versatile and practical. The technique was used with a standard personal computer to forecast flooding in the aftermath of the Nankai Trough earthquake, and the results were extremely favorable. Fugaku has paved the groundwork for a future in which these powerful sea-level prediction algorithms are accessible and usable via more conventional methods.
5. Fugaku Can Assist in the Development of Small Molecules to Combat COVID-19
Fugaku Can Assist in the Development of Small Molecules to Combat COVID-19 The global pandemic inflicted incalculable devastation, but we are now finally equipped to combat the sickness. Fugaku was instrumental in detecting and understanding the spread of COVID-19, which the majority are ignorant of. Fugaku’s research demonstrated how COVID droplets moved across trains and automobiles and how opening the windows significantly increased airflow and reduced infection risk.
It found that face shields are mainly useless at preventing the viral spread and that woven linen masks are the most effective. Since 2020, the system has been doing constant COVID-19 research, and now the University of Tokyo and Fujitsu have partnered to employ Fugaku to produce small molecules to fight COVID-19 infection, with the goal of identifying a highly effective treatment medicine for COVID-19.
Summary
Technology advances at a breakneck pace, with new discoveries and inventions occurring daily. As our reliance on technology increases, it is critical to remember what we are capable of accomplishing on our own. While the achievement of supercomputers may appear miraculous, we can all contribute to making the world a better place for everyone.
