Technology

Supercomputers Used to Solve Impossible Problems

The Department of Energy has given out the largest ever awards of the Department\'s supercomputing time to 57 innovative research projects. Computer simulations...

Federal News Radio Custom Media@WTOPWFEDcustom

December 14, 2010 5:39 pm

< a min read

The Department of Energy has given out the largest ever awards of the Department’s supercomputing time to 57 innovative research projects. Computer simulations will be used to perform virtual experiments that in most cases would be impossible or impractical.

Using two world-leading supercomputers with a computational capacity roughly equal to 135,000 laptops, officials say the research could, for example, help speed the development of more efficient solar cells, make improvements in the production of biofuels, or develop medications that can help slow the progression of certain diseases.

Selected projects were chosen for their potential to advance scientific discoveries, speed technological innovations, and strengthen industrial competitiveness.