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> In a big cluster, as many as forty-eight pizza-box-size servers slide into a rack as tall as a person; these racks stand in rows, filling buildings the size o
by thethethethe 5y ago
> In a big cluster, as many as forty-eight pizza-box-size servers slide into a rack as tall as a person; these racks stand in rows, filling buildings the size of warehouses. The neural networks in such systems can tackle daunting problems, but they also face clear challenges. A network spread across a cluster is like a brain that’s been scattered around a room and wired together. Electrons move fast, but, even so, cross-chip communication is slow, and uses extravagant amounts of energy.
Why wouldn't these giant chips be wired together into a cluster too?
- Nevermark 5y agoI am sure it will happen, but the cost effectiveness and efficiency will drop so dramatically going from 1 wafer to just 2 wafers. 1 wafer, doing X work, in Y time = 1 wafer, doing 2X work, in 2Y time = Two wafers, doing 2X work, in something still close to 2Y time I.e. the slowness of between-wafer communication, vs. in-wafer communication, will dwarf the computing time. Obviously there is some N, where N wafers would be worth clustering, but it might be quite high. Maybe the company is working on ways to cut down cross-wafer communication too. Vertical optical connections for instance would be awesome.