Energy to solution: A new mission for parallel computing

Abstract

For a long period in the development of computers and computing efficient applications were only characterized by computational - and memory complexity or in more practical terms elapsed computing time and required main memory capacity. The history of Euro-Par and its predecessor-organizations stands for research on the development of ever more powerful computer architectures that shorten the compute time both by faster clocking and by parallel execution as well as the development of algorithms that can exhibit these parallel architectural features. The success of enhancing architectures and algorithms is best described by exponential curves regarding the peak computing power of architectures and the efficiency of algorithms. As microprocessor parts get more and more power hungry and electricity gets more and more expensive, "energy to solution" is a new optimization criterion for large applications. This calls for energy aware solutions. © 2013 Springer-Verlag.