Ultracomputer

The NYU Ultracomputer is a significant processor design in the history of parallel computing. The system has N processors, N memories and an N log N message-passing switch connecting them. The system supported an innovative fetch-and-add process coordination instruction and the custom VLSI network switches could combine references (including fetch-and-adds) from several processors into a single reference, to reduce memory contention.

The machine was developed in the 1980s at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences Computer Science Department, based on a concept developed by Jacob T. Schwartz.[1] Most of the work done was theoretical, but two prototypes were built:[2]<[3]

  • An 8 processor bus-based machine
  • A 16 processor, 16 memory-module machine with custom VLSI switches supporting the fetch-and-add instruction.

References

  1. ↑ Jacob T. Schwartz (October 1980). "Ultracomputers". ACM Transactions on Programming Languages and Systems. 2 (4): 484–521. doi:10.1145/357114.357116.
  2. ↑ The NYU Ultracomputer Project
  3. ↑ Allan Gottlieb (October 1987). An Overview of the NYU Ultracomputer Project (PDF) (Report). Ultracomputer Note #100, New York University. Retrieved October 30, 2016.


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