Peak processing
Here is an interesting article on some of the real physical limitations of our basic computing technology:
“Why the Computer is Doomed”
Omar El Akkad
From Saturday’s Globe and Mail Published on Friday, Jan. 29, 2010 4:03PM EST
A few months ago, a colleague of mine had mentioned to me that there are currently physical limitations to the production of processors, meaning that the constant upward evolution of processing power is hitting a brick wall. While there are different methods available, these remain theoretical or experimental and are nowhere near being scalable to mass market dimensions (and we need to remember that the current technology has been in development for decades). I suppose what this means is that, other than adding more processors, we will probably not experience great strides in mass consumer technology that we are used to seeing in the past.
However, the article also points out the issue energy consumption, especially how this affects large-scale super computers, but this is an issue that will become more of a general one when considered in conjunction to peak energy. The connection of these two issues is real since, ultimately, the evolution of the computer is entirely dependent on abundant cheap energy: for decades of research and development, mining and processing of raw materials (especially rare elements), continued improvements of equipment and manufacturing equipment, chemistry, a massive education system to continually contribute to its development (economic specialization), and oodles and oodles of cheap energy to make, ship, market, retail, use, and dispose of all these computers.
At any rate, just as the economists around the world are starting to realize that , yes, there are physical laws out there… meaning that our economic reality is based upon finite resources… we are realizing that Moore’s Law needs to be modified so that it is understood that it is predicated on inexpensive and seemingly endless energy as well as the simple laws of our physical world.
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