Cluster Computing:

UCSC USES CLUSTER OF XSERVE G5s TO PROPEL RESEARCH

Using a cluster of 36 Apple Xserve G5s, University of California Santa Cruz will be able to process complicated computer science problems in a much easier manner.

Magnetic phase transitions and protein folding will be among the research projects explored, but UCSC will also use the cluster to play Go, an ancient Chinese game that experts believe to be more challenging than chess.

David Doshay, a university alumnus, and Professor Charlie McDowell created the cluster. Citing plenty of rack space, the researchers plan to add more nodes to increase the cluster's processing abilities.

The research and development team of the Australian Defence Force also employs an Xserve cluster, consisting of 16 nodes. In addition, the US military uses 1,566 Xserve G5s for its security and research endeavors.

Also benefiting from Xserve clustering technology are the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrated Genomics and biotechnology firm Genentech.

The Virginia Tech cluster installation, which placed in the top three fastest supercomputers in the world, has not been watched lately, however. Despite its place in Top500 list, the cluster currently is not running because its G5 Power Mac cluster is being updated with an Xserve G5 cluster.