Intel Devises Chip Speed Breakthrough

Chad Wood writes "According to the New York Times (free reg. req.), Intel has demonstrated a research breakthrough, making silicon chips that can switch light like electricity. The article explains:''This opens up whole new areas for Intel,' said Mario Paniccia, a an Intel physicist, who started the previously secret Intel research program to explore the possibility of using standard semiconductor parts to build optical networks. 'We're trying to siliconize photonics.' The invention demonstrates for the first time, Intel researchers said, that ultrahigh-speed fiberoptic equipment can be produced at personal computer industry prices. As the costs of communicating between computers and chips falls, the barrier to building fundamentally new kinds of computers not limited by physical distance should become a reality, experts say.'"

Intel's secret breakthrough

[Anonymous Coward]

"We've taken two AMD chips and put them both dual configuration with a giant 'Intel' sticker on top. Then, we sell it for twice what we paid, and get the lusers... err, I mean... users to buy it because it says 'Intel Inside.'"

We all know, of course. . .

[jafac]

that it will have to be x86 compatible, or it will never fly.

EMP

[potpie]

This kind of technology seems like a very healthy step toward making computers resistant to electromagnetic waves and/or pulses (aided also by the rise of optical storage devices), which is great for us humans now. But now what are we going to use against the "squiddies" when they come for our hovercrafts?

New AOL IntelSpeed!

[Anonymous Coward]

With new AOL IntelSpeed (tm) I can compute faster than ever! All my friends and family use AOL IntelSpeed (tm), too!

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Modders: Each box with a laser toy inside!!!

[l0ungeb0y]

Photonics == lasers
So this technology should also revolutionize the mod scene and therefore dramatically effect Slashdot's front page.
I wonder how many kids will accidentally burn their eyes out looking into the light?

Moore's Law

[Anonymous Coward]

...or is this (Moore's Law)^2 ?

Better yet...will this be meazured in LHz (Ludicrous-hertz)?

As a duck

[geekoid]

I am far more interested in overquacking then I am in overclacking.
overclocking is right out. ;)

Faster-than-light computers?

[Carnildo]

...building fundamentally new kinds of computers not limited by physical distance should become a reality...

So they've broken the lightspeed barrier? Amazing!

Re:Still binary..

[_ph1ux_]

01111001 01100001 00101100 00100000 01001001 00100000 01110100 01101111 01110100 01100001 01101100 01101100 01111001 00100000 01100001 01100111 01110010 01100101 01100101 00100000 01110111 01101001 01110100 01101000 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01101111 01101110 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01101111 01101110 01100101 00100000 00101101 00100000 01101000 01101111 01110000 01100101 01100110 01110101 01101100 01101100 01111001 00100000 01101001 01110100 00100000 01110111 01101001 01101100 01101100 00100000 01101000 01100001 01110000 01110000 01100101 01101110 00100000 01110011 01101111 01101111 01101110 00101110 00100000 01001001 00100000 01100001 01101101 00100000 01110111 01100101 01100001 01110010 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01101111 01110101 01110100 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 01110011 01100101 00100000 01110100 01110111 01101111 00100000 01101011 01100101 01111001 01110011 00101110 00101110 00101110

Know what I mean?

But can we TRUST this intel?

[Sebastopol]

Given the current press reports from the White House and David Kay, how do we know we can trust this intel?

Re:Still binary..

[condition-label-red]

Doesn't the "bi" in "bit" mean two? So we would have to call three states a "trit"; and four states a "quit" to keep them straight.

Re:Whoo now

[geekoid]

He said he was "Bond, James Bond"..then ordered a martini.

Lightspeed limitations?

[Stonent1]

So now the only barrier is the speed of light? Or do I need a nice warp core sitting in my living room to overclock?

Re:Still binary..

[Pharmboy]

but would 12 states be a twit? ;)

Re:Still binary..

[irokitt]

You know, maybe you are right. And I think we should also stop counting in base-10. I mean, we've been doing that for, like, forever. And it would be so cool to count in base-13. And maybe we should live in tepees. Because they're cool.

Re:Still binary..

[nomadic]

01110111 01100101 01101100 01101100 00100000 01110111 01101000 01100101 01101110 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101111 01110011 01100101 00100000 01100111 01101001 01110110 01100101 00100000 01101111 01110101 01110100 00101100 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01100011 01100001 01101110 00100000 01110011 01110111 01101001 01110100 01100011 01101000 00100000 01110100 01101111 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 00100000 01101011 01100101 01111001 01110000 01100001 01100100

Re:damn universe..

[nomadic]

I think the universe might disagree.

That universe, thinks he's so smart...

Re:But can we TRUST this intel?

[Anonymous Coward]

Even if the intel is not reliable; the ends will justify the means.

Re:Can someone tell me....

[PalmKiller]

Um, that might not be wise. If you try to overclock past the speed of light, I think that will cause a rift in the Time/Space Continuum. :P

Re:Whoo now

[NanoGator]

"What did Moore have to say about this?"

He said that it was Bush's fault that we don't have this technology already. He was then booed by the audience at the awards show.

Re:Still binary..

[gilrain]

So, you would have tits (Tertiary digITs).

Re:EMP

[ibullard]

We follow Monty Python's advice and fill them with eels.

Finally....

[vwjeff]

Computing at the speed of light. Oh, wait, bottlenecks. Damn you serial ATA Hard Drive!!!

Re:Can someone tell me....

[Jaysyn]

This is much better than early forays into this technology by AMD where the heatsink would fall off of the processor & the resultant heat would generate the light.

Jaysyn

Stickers make it go faster!

[TheDukePatio]

What's more likely is that they had a couple highschool kids lower the chips 2", crazy glue a spoiler on, install neon undercarriage lights, a fake pushbutton labeled "Nitrous", and stickers, LOTS of stickers.

New Codename: Ricer

Hail Photons!

[andy55]

I, for one, welcome our new photon overlords.

Re:Still binary..

[Michael Woodhams]

I think they are normally called "trits".

On the otherhand, Google only got 5090 hits for "trits" and 16,600,000 for "tits", so perhaps that is the more common term. I see, however, that the top hit for "tits" is about bird-watching, so this alternative meaning may have contaminated the results.

Re:Still binary..

[el-spectre]

Respectfully... I distrust the discussion of "third base" from a computer geek :)

Re:Intel's secret breakthrough

[blair1q]

It's telling that someone modded a unique posting of personal experience as "redundant."

It's telling me the pro-Asslon community is willing to corrupt political systems to pretend their favorite product is superior to that produced by The Evil Empire.

Re:Photonics

[Snoopy77]

You know you're a slashdotter when:

You search through issues of Peoeple and Sports Illustrated to find a copy of Photonics Spectra.

Re:Still binary..

[MrHanky]

I'm not upgrading before we have CLits (CL in Roman numerals should be something like 150). 150 states for each bit is what you need for serious realtime porn-rendering, man!

HOP

[forkboy]

Hooked on Photonics worked for me!

Re:Google link (KW)

[spacecowboy420]

Have you ever noticed [especially the french] how much vacation these guys have? I work in the US with a UK, French, and German team. These fucking guys are always on vacation. They're fucking genuises, but don't get to work often enough to get shit done....

Re:damn universe..

[xorbe]

Ahh, but if we went through the Earth, max latency is ~85ms!

Breakthrough?

[Grave]

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 11 -- Intel scientists say that they have made silicon chips that can switch light like electricity, blurring the line between computing and communications and presenting a vision of the digital future that will allow computers themselves to span cities or even the entire globe.

Great! I was getting so tired of my computer being only 5lbs and man-portable! I can't wait for these new planet-sized computers. Mine's going to be called the Death Star.

Re:Photonics

[natrius]

You know you're a slashdotter when you can't spell "people".

</cheap shot>

Re:EMP

[jsse]

This kind of technology seems like a very healthy step toward making computers resistant to electromagnetic waves

Your joke reminded me of an instance when I saw a co-worker sitting on a P-IV box while working on it. I took the chance to play some prank on him.

"It could fire your 'eggs'"
"What?!"
"You know what clock speed this thingy is running?"
"2.4GHz, why?"
"What's the wave frequency of a microwave oven?"
(jumping up)"....OH SHIT"

(It's just a joke. I don't think the CPU has enough strength to fry your 'eggs'. Even so, the wave can't penatrate the metallic case) :)

Re:Still binary..

[LittleBigLui]

So instead of being "yes"/"no", bits should offer more possibilities, like "maybe", "can i call a friend?" and "CowboyNeal"?

Re:Can someone tell me....

[DrSkwid]

When is it that one thinks 'okay, I have enough porn now' ?

Re:Breakthrough?

[psoriac]

Wouldn't "Unicron" be a better name for something like a planet-sized computer?

Re:Intel's secret breakthrough

[Mr Guy]

Ah hah, you've cleverly chosen secret option D) I don't understand my own hardware.

AMD FX 64 [amd.com]
Mobile AMD Athlon 64 [amd.com]

You aren't talking about the same chips at all.

Re:Breaking the laws of physics?

[TheInternet]

I was under the impression that physical distance was always a limitation...?

Depends on which physics you want to use. :)

- Scott