The Basics of the Supercomputer at Universities
Monday, October 5, 2009 by Mike Bertolino 
Oberlin College's Super ComputerMore and more universities are getting supercomputers. Students who are in the computer science department aren't the only people getting a chance to use them either. Supercomputers are being used for intense calculations that are useful for a lot of departments to have. So, here's what you should know about supercomputers should happen to use on in your time at school.
Software
Supercomputers tend to run Linux. Most people don't use this operating system. The interface is generally under-developed so you'll probably be running something like what Tom Cruise hacked into in the first Mission impossible.
The Chronicle of Higher Education recently published a blog post about how software running on these hulked out machines is becoming outdated. The post said that some of the code was from the sixties! So, if you're going to be doing some high-end cosmological research be prepared to be looking at something MS-DOS shit out. The problem is caused by there not being an easy computer language for super computers.
Uses
Supercomputers are generally used for high-end calculations. No American History I term papers are written on these bad boys (or girls). You've got your run of the mill, meteorological calculation for weather patters and such. It's a lot of simulations, where there are more problems solved in one day than a human could do in their lifetime.
Collaboration
A lot of universities are doing the same types of research. The more data academia has as a who the more likely we'll be able to see patterns create better theories about the world around us. For students working on these types of research projects, you should take the chance to network with students from the schools you're working with. It makes sense because you're both doing something you love (hopefully). It could end up in partnership that advances your science as a whole.
Have you had any experience with supercomputers at your college or university? If so, comment below!
Image via Oberlin College
Reader Comments (5)
Linux is not like what Tom Cruise hacked. It's just different than what you're used to. I run Linux on my MSI Wind and it has a graphical interface that's really easy to use. While most supercomputers won't have a graphical interface, the core is the same. And actually, we're getting above 1% of the desktop market now, and we still have something like 90% of servers running either Linux or BSD.
Some of this is really questionable.
Linus Torvalds didn't even start development of the linux kernel until 1991, so none of that code is from the 60's. Granted, other pieces of software on the system might be more dated, but even at that, code written in lanugages from the 60's can and most likely has been ported to modern languages where it can be written much faster.
Secondly, the post references MS-DOS, which doesn't run on linux. MS-DOS is made my microsoft. Linux shells are more complete and easier to use than the typical cmd.exe windows users have to use.
And on that easy of use note, the post also states that linux's interface is underdeveloped, which is not true at all. Its designed to do different tasks easily. An interface that makes supercomputing easy is different from an interface that makes web browsing easy.
I had some experience setting up a "supercomputer" (really just a small Beowulf cluster) at my college this past summer, and I can attest that supercomputer software is by no means out of date.
Frequently, supercomputers (which are just clusters of computers) have some sort of proprietary setup and interface if they are purchased from a company (like Cray machines). But open-sourced clusters (like Beowulfs) have some pretty decent software out there to help submit jobs to the cluster and monitor the cluster's status. The user may need to use the command line a bit (oh noes!) but it's really not bad once the user is trained. You can even get GUI monitoring software that's viewed in a web browser.
Having said all that, it's good for students to know about the availability of supercomputers, and some may even be surprised to find that their own college has one. At my college, our cluster is used by the chemistry department to run simulations, but it may also be used by other departments in the future to run intense calculations. If you do research with a science department (or another department!), you might be able to use one.
I haven't been subscribed to HackCollege for very long, I heard about it through Lifehacker. After reading this post, and how you dis Linux, I am going to unsubscribe. In fact... I am writing this comment from Linux. I use it as my primary Operating system. So be a little careful about what you say, and don't insult something that you are not familiar with!
I too ended up here through Lifehacker, and though there's definitely some quality material around here, this particular post was absolutely appaling.
You, MIKE, obviously haven't the slightest clue about Linux, and as such, shouldn't be running your mouth about it. From this day forth, I'll be treating your posts with utmost scrutiny, and would advise others to do the same.