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From: Arthur.Yuter@f823.n102.z1.FIDONET.ORG (Arthur Yuter)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware
Subject: Desktop Supercomputer?
Message-ID: <51556.2643C289@cmhgate.FIDONET.ORG>
Date: 2 May 90 18:45:37 GMT
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The Air Force had a problem:  from a satellite, how to detect a target
against the earth's background to insure that its the real thing and not
a decoy.  A physically small and light computer was needed that could very
quickly digest and analyze enormous quantities of mathematical data from
sensors, and then use that information to guide a counter missile.
As reported in the April 30 issue of Federal Computer Week, there's a
possible solution.  Based upon a chip designed for the Air Force by Texas
Instruments and Rockwell, the Air Force predicts a computer the size of a
deck of cards capable of operating 500 times faster than todays desktop
computers.  According to this article, the breakthrough is based upon a
new way to package semiconductors: the chips are mounted directly onto a
silicon substrate rather than on ceramic, which permits stacking of the
elements, assertedly resulting in a lower impedance, closer connections, a
higher transfer rate between elements, and ultimately a much faster clock
speed.  It was claimed that an entire micro computer, including the CPU,
memory chips, i/o chips, power chips and other needed semiconductors could
be mounted in a package about two inches square by half-inch high.  This
new signal processor has a claimed weight of about 75 grams and is capable
of up to 500 million operations per second.  Texas Instruments projects
shipping a prototype in May, 1991. 

--  
Arthur Yuter via cmhGate - Net 226 fido<=>uucp gateway Col, OH
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