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Chapter 1738: Origin of the Industrial Revolution (Third update, please subscribe)
Supercomputer.

Since the Deep Blue 2000 supercomputer came out, people naively thought that it was the computer for the 21st century. After all, its computing speed reached million times per second.

Therefore, simple and ignorant people named it "Deep Blue 2000".

Deep means deep thinking, blue means the deep blue sea.

This was the "miracle" for the year 2000. In their view, it would be the most advanced electronic computer in human history for many years to come.

Yes!

He is the most advanced one, and it is far beyond people's imagination.

But who would have thought that in the next few years, the beautiful fantasy would be constantly shattered by the rapid progress!

From 2.5 million to 3 million, from 4 million to 5 million, then to million, million, and finally to million!
Faced with such progress, almost no one believes that there is an end to supercomputers.

But in the face of such progress, everyone would think that there would be no major breakthroughs, at least in the next one or two years.

When Deep Blue 2100 came out, the whole world was silent.

Especially American companies - just last year, when they were still proud of breaking the computing speed of 5 million, the advent of Deep Blue 2100 from Intel Electronics Corporation allowed SEA to regain the title of supercomputer king.

Suddenly, IEC, or International Electronics Corporation, once again became the darling of the media.

In the IEC supercomputer laboratory, the air seems to be filled with a rhythmic noise, which is the noise of the supercomputer cooling fans.

A huge parallel vector computer stood in the center of the room, with countless tiny indicator lights flashing on the outer shell, like the morning star, foreshadowing the future.

Its volume occupies one-third of the entire room. The huge cabinets are arranged neatly and the cooling system emits a low hum, as if providing this behemoth with a constant supply of vitality.

Two researchers stood in front of the console, staring intently at the data stream scrolling on the screen.

Wang Siwei, sitting in front of the console, tapped the keyboard lightly and called up the data that the computer was calculating.

The calculations they are currently performing are based on a set of data sent by Nanyang Aerospace Industries. Although they do not know what this set of data will ultimately be used for, the data is indeed very complex.

Even if we use a Deep Blue 2000 series supercomputer, it will probably take a long time.

But now they are getting close to results.

“It’s incredible,”

Wang Siwei said in a low voice, with an inexplicable awe in his voice.

“This machine, its potential… is simply immeasurable.”

Li Yuanhang, a colleague standing next to him, nodded, his hands in the pockets of his white coat, his eyes still fixed on the screen.

"Yes, the performance has improved several times."

Looking at the data displayed on the screen, he said this with longing.

"Just think about it. Geological research, weather forecasting, aerospace... these fields will undergo earth-shaking changes because of it."

His voice was filled with anticipation for the future.

"We can simulate the propagation path of earthquakes and predict the formation and movement of typhoons. With it, we can more accurately forecast earthquakes and typhoons. And this is exactly what we need."

This is true. Although Chang'an has almost never been directly hit by a typhoon, the entire SEA encounters several typhoons every year, and the losses are in the billions.

As for earthquakes, there is no need to mention it. Except for the main island of Borneo, all other islands are located in the earthquake zone, and they are also located on the Pacific Rim seismic belt. This is why the houses in SEA are still mainly wooden houses. It is because they are earthquake-resistant. Even if they collapse in an earthquake, the possibility of survival is very high.

Although earthquakes cannot be predicted now, the use of supercomputers can help people study earthquakes to the greatest extent.

"Yes, not only that, it even designs more efficient spacecraft, such as new moon landing spacecraft."

Wang Siwei smiled slightly, nodded, and said:
"Yes, its computing power allows us to process data volumes that were previously unimaginable. Just think about it. A few years ago, we were still cheering for supercomputers with a speed of 1 million times, but now it has exceeded billion times in just a short period of time. Such progress is simply unbelievable."

“It can even be said to be unbelievable!”

Li Yuanhang's eyes showed a trace of emotion. He looked at the supercomputer in front of him and said:
"The speed of technological progress in recent years is amazing. I still remember when we first started studying parallel computing, integrated circuits were far less advanced than they are today. Who would have thought that in just a few years, we would jump from a million times to a billion times?"

“And this is far from the end.”

Wang Siwei took over the conversation, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
"According to the development speed of integrated circuits, it may not be long before we can design a supercomputer with a computing speed of tens of billions or even hundreds of billions of times. By then, the current machine may seem like a toy."

"You are talking about Lee's Law - when the price remains unchanged, the number of transistors that can be accommodated on an integrated circuit will double every 18-24 months, and the performance will also double. As of now, our development speed has even exceeded the law you proposed, doubling almost every 12 months."

Looking at the supercomputer in front of him, Li Yuanhang said with emotion.

"Sometimes, I really feel like we are dreaming. A few years ago, who would have thought that electronic computers would enter ordinary households? Maybe one day ordinary home computers will be able to break through the computing speed of hundreds of millions of times? Maybe in a few years, the computers in our homes will be able to do what this supercomputer can do now.

Maybe it will be more powerful than this one, and by then, every family will have one, or even several, computers that are more advanced than this one." Wang Siwei nodded, with a hint of disbelief in his eyes.

“Yes, even though we are scientists, sometimes the future still seems incredible. We are at the forefront of technology, but we still can’t fully predict where it will take us.”

"No, or rather, we don't know what the future will be like!"

Li Yuanhang stared at the screen and said:

"Because we have no idea how far it will develop. A dozen years ago, a computer with a computing power of a million times was a miracle, but what about now? A billion times, maybe in a dozen years, there will be computers with computing power of a trillion times. Its development speed is far beyond our imagination."

Hearing him say this, Wang Siwei thought of something that the professors mentioned when he returned to his alma mater, and said:
"Yes, I heard that the school dismantled several of their old-fashioned computers. According to the school, those computers, which cost millions to buy, are not as fast as the current personal computers."

After thinking for a moment, he added.

"You know, we at Nanyang University attracted many European professors because we had several computers. At that time, there were only a few computers in the world, but our university had them. Many professors came to Nanyang University just to use computers for their research."

In the past, Nanyang University attracted scholars from all over the world with its advanced hardware facilities.

Adequate research funds and advanced hardware facilities have driven the development of Nanyang University and enabled it to rise rapidly and become one of the top three universities in the world.

However, the magical weapons of the past are no longer worth mentioning now.

"But now they have fallen behind, or they have fallen behind a few years ago. The little sweetheart back then has become Mrs. Niu today."

Li Yuanhang lamented the speed at which technology is becoming obsolete, saying:

"Everything is becoming obsolete so fast, faster than we can imagine, even ourselves. If we slack off a little, we may be surpassed by our American counterparts. Maybe Deep Blue 2100 is very advanced now, but by the end of the year, our peers will launch faster supercomputers."

"You chase me!"

“You never know who will surpass whom, and who will be ahead of whom in the end!”

"This is a race! But it is faster and more direct than any other race in history. Any country that fails to catch this express will be left far behind."

"It's not just an express train, it's like a hyperloop. You either get on it or you're left far behind, and you can't catch up."

The two were silent for a moment, the only sound in the room being the hum of the machine.

Wang Siwei's eyes fell on the screen again. Those rolling numbers seemed to be there foreshadowing the future, a future with infinite possibilities.

"This is a new industrial revolution that is different from any previous industrial revolution. The changes it will bring to our work and life will far exceed those of previous industrial revolutions."

When he talked about the "Industrial Revolution", he deliberately emphasized the tone, as if only in this way could he show its importance.

“Industrial Revolution!”

Li Yuanhang was a little surprised by his colleague's words. Although they had learned about the Industrial Revolution in history textbooks, was the electronic computer an Industrial Revolution?

At least it's not obvious now.

"The electronic computer is the beginning of a new industrial revolution. We are just in it now and have not yet felt the changes it has brought to mankind. But I believe that its invention will be the greatest invention of mankind since the invention of the steam engine.

The invention of the steam engine brought us new power. The invention of the electronic computer is intellectual, and it will subvert and change everything.”

Sighing softly, Wang Siwei whispered:

"In any case, electronic computers, including this supercomputer, have changed the way we conduct scientific research and production. And all this is just the beginning.

Maybe in a few years, the whole world will realize this, they will realize that we are in the midst of an industrial revolution, and they will truly feel the changes that electronic computers have brought to mankind.”

Li Yuanhang nodded, with a hint of expectation in his eyes:
"If this is just the beginning, then how exciting the future will be."

When they said this, they both fell silent, their eyes full of longing for the future. It was as if at this moment, they had seen the future full of infinite possibilities.

"I don't know how exciting that future is, or what it will look like, but one thing I can be sure of is that it's us. I mean us, you know?"

When Wang Siwei said "we", he emphasized the word "we" deliberately, as if he was afraid that the other party would not understand the meaning of his words.

"We will be the pioneers and leaders of this industrial revolution. We will leave our mark in modern human civilization. Do you understand us?"

Li Yuanhang nodded, then said:
"I know, I know, this belongs to us, it belongs to our ethnic group..." After saying this, his eyes were full of anticipation. What he expected was not only how wonderful the future world created by electronic computers would be, but more importantly, he would see a future created by them.

In this future, they, all of them will become the pioneers of this future, and they are the ones who create all this.

“The future!”

Wang Siwei turned his eyes to the supercomputer in front of him and moved the mouse - this was a new invention two years ago. Although it did not look very impressive, it changed the way people operated computers.

Looking at the data flashing on the screen, he pressed the mouse with his right hand as if he had seen the future...

(End of this chapter)