Reed's Ruminations: The Past, Present, and Future
Reflections on science, technology, and computing — leavened by personal experience
Category: Technology
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One Life to Live
The world lost two innovators in computing. About the first, Steve Jobs, much has been written, but far less about another pioneer of computing, Dennis Ritchie. Richie’s passing was not noted with great fanfare, but he made a difference. All of us in computing honor that.
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Analog Computing: Time for a Comeback?
Use of the word “computer” conjures certain images and brings certain assumptions. One of them, so deeply ingrained that we rarely question it, is that computing is digital. It’s time to reconsider analog computing as an element of computer system design, particularly in a world of near threshold voltage designs, dark silicon, exascale computing and…
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It Is Fall: There Must Be Clouds
Today, I testified to the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Space, Science and Technology. The topic of the hearing was “The Next IT Revolution?: Cloud Computing Opportunities and Challenges.” This is an exciting time, when computing can be a great equalizer, providing access to the world’s knowledge…
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TechAmerica Cloud Commission Report
Today, the TechAmerica Foundation released its cloud computing report. I was privileged to be the commercial co-chair, working with a host of industry and academic leaders. The report addresses two key issues, raised by the U.S. Federal CIO and Secretary of Commerce. First, to identify the principles and actions that could accelerate the uptake of…
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White Spaces and Adaptive Communication
The demand for wireless communication continues to grow, placing unprecedented demands on spectrum management and allocation. Spectrum is like beach front property; we can’t make more and we must use it wisely. New, more adaptive management approaches are needed.
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HPC In The Clouds: ISC Reflections
When any new technology appears, there is a great temptation to see it through the lens of the old, either in nomenclature or behavior. As with previous HPC technology transitions, clouds bring a set of technical and cultural challenges , but I believe we are moving down the path of successful adoption.