Multicore Processors for Science and Engineering

There\´s no question that multicore processors have gone mainstream. These computer chips, which have more than one CPU, first hit the consumer market less than two years ago. Today, practically every new computer has a dual-core (two-CPU) chip, and Intel just launched a quad-core chip with four CPUs. One of 2006\´s most in-demand holiday gifts was Sony\´s PlayStation 3, which boasts a "cell" chip with nine CPUs for faster and more realistic video gaming. Multicore systems might offer advantages to gamers, but what about researchers? David A. Bader, who directs a new research center at Georgia Tech devoted to cell technology, says that making the most of multicore systems will require new tools, new algorithms, and a new way of looking at programming