VOA慢速英语:China's Tianhe-2 Supercomputer Takes No. 1 Ranking on TOP500 List

China's Tianhe-2 supercomputer has just been rated No. 1 on the top 500 -- a respected list of the world's most powerful computers. Experts measured the supercomputer's performance at 33.86 petaflop or quadrillion of operations per second.
中国的天河2号超级计算机刚刚被评为世界最强大计算机五百强的第一名，这是一个受人尊敬的名单。专家测到，该超级计算机的性能达到每秒33.86千万亿次运算。

China's National University of Defense Technology developed the supercomputer, which runs twice as fast as the No. 2 rated Titan super computer. It belongs to the United States Government's Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. Both Tianhe-2 and Titan are part of an ongoing race to make supercomputers faster and more powerful.
中国国防科技大学研制了这台超级计算机，它的运行速度第二名的泰坦超级计算机的两倍。泰坦超级计算机属于美国政府位于田纳西州的橡树岭国家实验室。天河2号和泰坦都是使得超级计算机更快更强的一次竞赛的一部分。

So what is a supercomputer? A basic personal computer has one microchip at the center of its operations. This Central Processing Unit, or CPU, executes a set of commands contained in a predesigned program.
那么，什么是超级计算机？一台基本个人电脑的运行中心都有一个微芯片，这个被称为中央处理器(CPU)执行预先设定程序中包含的命令。

The first supercomputers had a few more CPUs. That number grew as microprocessors became cheaper and faster. Andrew Grimshaw, a computer science professor at the University of Virginia explains:
第一台超级计算机只有多一些中央处理器（CPU）。这一数字随着微处理器变得更快更便宜而增长。弗吉尼亚大学计算机科学教授Andrew Grimshaw解释说：

"Today, supercomputers are all what we call parallel machines. Instead of one CPU - central processing unit - they have thousands and thousands. And in the case of the Chinese machine, depending on how you count, millions of the central processing units."
“今天，超级计算机就是我们所说的并行机器。它不止一个CPU，而是有成千上万个。在中国这台超级计算机中，根据统计就有数百万计的中央处理器。”

These parallel machines are made up of many individual computers called nodes. They are all positioned in one block. They used a lot of power, create a lot of heat, and require huge cooling systems. They also use programs different from those used by ordinary computers.
这些并行机器由许多被称为节点的独立的计算机组成。他们被放置在一个块上，它们使用大量电能，制造大量的热量，需要巨大的冷却系统。他们也不同于那些使用普通电脑使用的程序。

Professor Grimshaw says anyone with enough resources can build a supercomputer to solve problems that require millions of mathematical calculations.
Grimshaw教授说，任何人有足够资源都可以建造一台超级计算机，用来解决需要数以百万计数学运算的问题。

But that's not always necessary. A virtual supercomputer can be created by networking individual computers within a university campus or company. These machines then process data during down time, when no one is using them.
但是，这并不总是必要的。可以通过大学校园或公司的个人电脑内联网来制造虚拟超级计算机。这些机器在没有人使用时可以处理数据。

"Those are very easy to run on virtual supercomputers because each problem is independent of all the others and I can scatter these jobs out all around the place. We run these all the time at UVA."
“在计算机上运行虚拟超级很简单。因为每个问题都相互独立，可以分散到各个地方进行解答。我们在弗吉尼亚大学一直这么做。”

Professor Grimshaw says that entire ten years ago, engineers worked on making computers faster. Since then, he says, they have worked to create more powerful parallel machines.
Grimshaw教授说，整整十年前，工程师们努力使得计算机更快。他说，从那时起，他们一直在努力创造更强大的并行机。

"It's transforming science and engineering, and it's going to continue to transform it in ways I think most people don't fully grasp - how well we can model and simulate the world now."
“这是科学和工程的转换，它还将用我认为大多数人不能完全掌握的方法继续改造。这种方法就是现在我们可以对世界进行建模和仿真。”

Professor Grimshaw says the increasing computing ability of supercomputers makes the future of research very bright.
Grimshaw教授说，超级计算机计算能力的不断增加，使得研究的未来非常光明。