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- Newsgroups: comp.sys.super
- Path: sparky!uunet!convex!tighe
- From: Mike Tighe <tighe@convex.COM>
- Subject: Re: Fujitsu and America
- Message-ID: <1992Jul31.051715.25994@convex.com>
- Originator: tighe@convex1.convex.com
- Keywords: Supercomputer, parallel processing, foreign
- Sender: usenet@convex.com (news access account)
- Nntp-Posting-Host: convex1.convex.com
- Reply-To: tighe@convex.com
- Organization: Convex Computer Corporation, Richardson, Texas
- References: <40173@skye.dcs.ed.ac.uk> <1992Jul29.181851.12025@news.eng.convex.com> <Bs65Cx.ML9@hplabs.hpl.hp.com>
- Distribution: comp.sys.super
- Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1992 05:17:15 GMT
- X-Disclaimer: This message was written by a user at CONVEX Computer
- Corp. The opinions expressed are those of the user and
- not necessarily those of CONVEX.
- Lines: 43
-
- fouts@hpl.hp.com writes:
-
- > Sigh.
-
- Sigh.
-
- > 1) Supercomputers are not widely used in command and control situations
- > because they don't have the high mean time to failure.
- >
- > 2) Most US supercomputers are used for research which would probably
- > stop in the kind of war being suggested above, and certainly not
- > critical to the prosecution of such a war.
-
- I don't mean to sound harsh, but unless you have actually worked in those
- [black] areas, you are not really qualified to draw those conclusions, are
- you? And if you have worked there (as I have), then you know you have to
- keep your mouth shut and smile. :-)
-
- Anyway, there is at least one system that is public knowledge. In fact, it
- was the topic of the keynote speech at the Banquet during Supercomputing
- 91. It was an interesting talk, since it gave a rare public glimpse of how
- the US uses supercomputers [for military purposes] to solve real problems.
-
- > 3) Not buying supercomputers for command and control does not imply
- > not buying supercomputers for research.
-
- I agree here.
-
- > Just because the NRO needs to function in a war doesn't mean NASA
- > can't buy a supercomputer for computational chemistry.
-
- ditto.
-
- Remember though that any "National Security" argument used to justify
- buying domestic computers can also be used by other countries for not
- buying US computers, and using their own home-grown product.
-
- And one other point. Content. Many of those chips (except Convex GaAs!),
- disk drives, etc. all come from the Land of the Rising Sun. So most of
- those domestic computers are not all that home-grown after all.
- --
- Mike Tighe, (214) 497-4206
- tighe@convex.com
-