Profiles in Computing

More than a bit faster

Imagine trying to find someone in a New York City telephone book if the names were listed randomly. Scientific databases… Read More

December 23, 2008

Interfaces move; algorithms follow

Mathematician James Sethian works on the edge. He confronts one of the most challenging problems in physics: capturing the behavior… Read More

December 5, 2008

Supercomputer saga

It’s 1973.  Major oil-producing countries have united to raise prices.  Arab nations have cut off oil shipments to much of… Read More

July 31, 2007

Computing climate

It’s impossible, of course, to bring the outdoors into a laboratory for experiments. That’s why scientists rely on computer models… Read More

June 18, 2007

Message passing passage

The high-performance computers that enable today’s cutting-edge science would be radically different – and less efficient – if some dedicated experts hadn’t… Read More

April 16, 2007