What’s New in HPC Research: TensorFlow, Buddy Compression, Intel Optane & More

By Oliver Peckham

March 20, 2019

In this bimonthly feature, HPCwire highlights newly published research in the high-performance computing community and related domains. From parallel programming to exascale to quantum computing, the details are here.


Evaluating TensorFlow’s performance in HPC applications

TensorFlow – an emerging open-source framework that supports using distributed applications on heterogeneous hardware – is gaining popularity for ML applications. In this paper – written by a team from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, South Park Commons, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory – the authors discuss the viability of TensorFlow for running HPC workloads on supercomputers. They design four traditional benchmark HPC applications and demonstrate that TensorFlow can take full advantage of high-performance networks and accelerators.

Authors: Steven W.D. Chien, Stefano Markidis, Vyacheslav Olshevsky, Yaroslav Bulatov, Erwin Laure and Jeffrey S. Vetter.

Achieving scalability and performance portability in high-performance weather and climate models

This paper, Eike Müller from the University of Bath discusses LFRic – the new high-performance weather and climate model being developed by the UK Met Office to replace the Unified Model. Müller focuses on the “separation of concerns” between scientific code and parallel code, enabled by an application called PSyclone. They provide an overview of the scientific requirements, the design of the software infrastructure, and examples of PSyclone usage.

Author: Eike Müller

Using “buddy compression” to enable greater memory for deep learning and HPC workloads on GPUs

GPUs offer higher memory bandwidth than CPU-only systems, but their memory is relatively small and non-expandable. In this paper, written by a team from the University of Texas at Austin and Nvidia, the authors propose “buddy compression,” a system to increase the effective GPU memory capacity and bandwidth while avoiding the typical pitfalls of memory expansion techniques. They discuss initial results, which show performance comparable to a more powerful system.

Authors: Esha Choukse, Michael Sullivan, Mike O’Connor, Mattan Erez, Jeff Pool, David Nellans and Steve Keckler.

Optimizing the I/O performance of HPC applications with autotuning

Obtaining quality I/O performance for diverse applications on disparate platforms can be a major challenge – not least because of the interdependencies between I/O middleware and hardware. Optimization of these interdependencies is obfuscated by endless combinations of parameters. In this paper, researchers from the University of Illinois and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory present an autotuning solution that can optimize I/O performance, demonstrating its benefits across several HPC platforms.

Authors: Babak Behzad, Surendra Byna, Prabhat and Marc Snir.

Developing a framework for lifecycle enrichment of HPC applications

As the exascale era draws nigh, researchers are faced with the daunting task of porting their existing applications and algorithms to new architectures and programming languages. In this dissertation, written by Karan Sapra of Clemson University, the author focuses on enriching the lifecycle of applications by providing an application to optimize architecture mapping and a framework to assist in optimizing heterogeneous environments.

Author: Karan Sapra

Assessing the impact of soft errors on large-scale FPGA cloud computing

FPGAs are often used to accelerate HPC applications — but they’re susceptible to “soft errors,” which can lead to silent data corruption or system instability. In this paper, written by researchers from the NSF Center for Space, High-Performance, and Resilient Computing, the authors investigate the failure rate of a handful of FPGA applications by performing fault injection experiments. They conclude that soft-error detection and mitigation may be necessary in certain systems.

Authors: Andrew M. Keller and Michael J. Wirthlin

Measuring the performance of the Intel Optane DC Persistent Memory Module

This paper, written by a team of University of California San Diego computer scientists, discusses the first comprehensive evaluation of Intel’s new Optane DC Persistent Memory Modules. The authors find that the Optane DIMMs can make key storage applications 17 times faster and that they can significantly expand main memory capacity without sacrificing significant performance.

Authors: Joseph Izraelevitz, Jian Yang, Lu Zhang, Juno Kim, Xiao Liu, Amirsaman Memaripour, Yun Joon Soh, Zixuan Wang, Yi Xu, Subramanya R. Dulloor, Jishen Zhao and Steven Swanson.


Do you know about research that should be included in next month’s list? If so, send us an email at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.

Subscribe to HPCwire's Weekly Update!

Be the most informed person in the room! Stay ahead of the tech trends with industry updates delivered to you every week!

Q&A with Nvidia’s Chief of DGX Systems on the DGX-GB200 Rack-scale System

March 27, 2024

Pictures of Nvidia's new flagship mega-server, the DGX GB200, on the GTC show floor got favorable reactions on social media for the sheer amount of computing power it brings to artificial intelligence.  Nvidia's DGX Read more…

Call for Participation in Workshop on Potential NSF CISE Quantum Initiative

March 26, 2024

Editor’s Note: Next month there will be a workshop to discuss what a quantum initiative led by NSF’s Computer, Information Science and Engineering (CISE) directorate could entail. The details are posted below in a Ca Read more…

Waseda U. Researchers Reports New Quantum Algorithm for Speeding Optimization

March 25, 2024

Optimization problems cover a wide range of applications and are often cited as good candidates for quantum computing. However, the execution time for constrained combinatorial optimization applications on quantum device Read more…

NVLink: Faster Interconnects and Switches to Help Relieve Data Bottlenecks

March 25, 2024

Nvidia’s new Blackwell architecture may have stolen the show this week at the GPU Technology Conference in San Jose, California. But an emerging bottleneck at the network layer threatens to make bigger and brawnier pro Read more…

Who is David Blackwell?

March 22, 2024

During GTC24, co-founder and president of NVIDIA Jensen Huang unveiled the Blackwell GPU. This GPU itself is heavily optimized for AI work, boasting 192GB of HBM3E memory as well as the the ability to train 1 trillion pa Read more…

Nvidia Appoints Andy Grant as EMEA Director of Supercomputing, Higher Education, and AI

March 22, 2024

Nvidia recently appointed Andy Grant as Director, Supercomputing, Higher Education, and AI for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). With over 25 years of high-performance computing (HPC) experience, Grant brings a Read more…

Q&A with Nvidia’s Chief of DGX Systems on the DGX-GB200 Rack-scale System

March 27, 2024

Pictures of Nvidia's new flagship mega-server, the DGX GB200, on the GTC show floor got favorable reactions on social media for the sheer amount of computing po Read more…

NVLink: Faster Interconnects and Switches to Help Relieve Data Bottlenecks

March 25, 2024

Nvidia’s new Blackwell architecture may have stolen the show this week at the GPU Technology Conference in San Jose, California. But an emerging bottleneck at Read more…

Who is David Blackwell?

March 22, 2024

During GTC24, co-founder and president of NVIDIA Jensen Huang unveiled the Blackwell GPU. This GPU itself is heavily optimized for AI work, boasting 192GB of HB Read more…

Nvidia Looks to Accelerate GenAI Adoption with NIM

March 19, 2024

Today at the GPU Technology Conference, Nvidia launched a new offering aimed at helping customers quickly deploy their generative AI applications in a secure, s Read more…

The Generative AI Future Is Now, Nvidia’s Huang Says

March 19, 2024

We are in the early days of a transformative shift in how business gets done thanks to the advent of generative AI, according to Nvidia CEO and cofounder Jensen Read more…

Nvidia’s New Blackwell GPU Can Train AI Models with Trillions of Parameters

March 18, 2024

Nvidia's latest and fastest GPU, codenamed Blackwell, is here and will underpin the company's AI plans this year. The chip offers performance improvements from Read more…

Nvidia Showcases Quantum Cloud, Expanding Quantum Portfolio at GTC24

March 18, 2024

Nvidia’s barrage of quantum news at GTC24 this week includes new products, signature collaborations, and a new Nvidia Quantum Cloud for quantum developers. Wh Read more…

Houston We Have a Solution: Addressing the HPC and Tech Talent Gap

March 15, 2024

Generations of Houstonian teachers, counselors, and parents have either worked in the aerospace industry or know people who do - the prospect of entering the fi Read more…

Alibaba Shuts Down its Quantum Computing Effort

November 30, 2023

In case you missed it, China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba has shut down its quantum computing research effort. It’s not entirely clear what drove the change. Read more…

Nvidia H100: Are 550,000 GPUs Enough for This Year?

August 17, 2023

The GPU Squeeze continues to place a premium on Nvidia H100 GPUs. In a recent Financial Times article, Nvidia reports that it expects to ship 550,000 of its lat Read more…

Shutterstock 1285747942

AMD’s Horsepower-packed MI300X GPU Beats Nvidia’s Upcoming H200

December 7, 2023

AMD and Nvidia are locked in an AI performance battle – much like the gaming GPU performance clash the companies have waged for decades. AMD has claimed it Read more…

DoD Takes a Long View of Quantum Computing

December 19, 2023

Given the large sums tied to expensive weapon systems – think $100-million-plus per F-35 fighter – it’s easy to forget the U.S. Department of Defense is a Read more…

Synopsys Eats Ansys: Does HPC Get Indigestion?

February 8, 2024

Recently, it was announced that Synopsys is buying HPC tool developer Ansys. Started in Pittsburgh, Pa., in 1970 as Swanson Analysis Systems, Inc. (SASI) by John Swanson (and eventually renamed), Ansys serves the CAE (Computer Aided Engineering)/multiphysics engineering simulation market. Read more…

Choosing the Right GPU for LLM Inference and Training

December 11, 2023

Accelerating the training and inference processes of deep learning models is crucial for unleashing their true potential and NVIDIA GPUs have emerged as a game- Read more…

Intel’s Server and PC Chip Development Will Blur After 2025

January 15, 2024

Intel's dealing with much more than chip rivals breathing down its neck; it is simultaneously integrating a bevy of new technologies such as chiplets, artificia Read more…

Baidu Exits Quantum, Closely Following Alibaba’s Earlier Move

January 5, 2024

Reuters reported this week that Baidu, China’s giant e-commerce and services provider, is exiting the quantum computing development arena. Reuters reported � Read more…

Leading Solution Providers

Contributors

Comparing NVIDIA A100 and NVIDIA L40S: Which GPU is Ideal for AI and Graphics-Intensive Workloads?

October 30, 2023

With long lead times for the NVIDIA H100 and A100 GPUs, many organizations are looking at the new NVIDIA L40S GPU, which it’s a new GPU optimized for AI and g Read more…

Shutterstock 1179408610

Google Addresses the Mysteries of Its Hypercomputer 

December 28, 2023

When Google launched its Hypercomputer earlier this month (December 2023), the first reaction was, "Say what?" It turns out that the Hypercomputer is Google's t Read more…

AMD MI3000A

How AMD May Get Across the CUDA Moat

October 5, 2023

When discussing GenAI, the term "GPU" almost always enters the conversation and the topic often moves toward performance and access. Interestingly, the word "GPU" is assumed to mean "Nvidia" products. (As an aside, the popular Nvidia hardware used in GenAI are not technically... Read more…

Shutterstock 1606064203

Meta’s Zuckerberg Puts Its AI Future in the Hands of 600,000 GPUs

January 25, 2024

In under two minutes, Meta's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, laid out the company's AI plans, which included a plan to build an artificial intelligence system with the eq Read more…

Google Introduces ‘Hypercomputer’ to Its AI Infrastructure

December 11, 2023

Google ran out of monikers to describe its new AI system released on December 7. Supercomputer perhaps wasn't an apt description, so it settled on Hypercomputer Read more…

China Is All In on a RISC-V Future

January 8, 2024

The state of RISC-V in China was discussed in a recent report released by the Jamestown Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. The report, entitled "E Read more…

Intel Won’t Have a Xeon Max Chip with New Emerald Rapids CPU

December 14, 2023

As expected, Intel officially announced its 5th generation Xeon server chips codenamed Emerald Rapids at an event in New York City, where the focus was really o Read more…

IBM Quantum Summit: Two New QPUs, Upgraded Qiskit, 10-year Roadmap and More

December 4, 2023

IBM kicks off its annual Quantum Summit today and will announce a broad range of advances including its much-anticipated 1121-qubit Condor QPU, a smaller 133-qu Read more…

  • arrow
  • Click Here for More Headlines
  • arrow
HPCwire