Summary of research in applied mathematics, numerical analysis and computer science at the Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering

Research conducted at the Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering in applied mathematics, numerical analysis and computer science during the period October 1, 1983 through March 31, 1984 is summarized

Dynamic Systolization for Developing Multiprocessor Supercomputers

A dynamic network approach is introduced for developing reconfigurable, systolic arrays or wavefront processors; This allows one to design very powerful and flexible processors to be used in a general-purpose, reconfigurable, and fault-tolerant, multiprocessor computer system. The concepts of macro-dataflow and multitasking can be integrated to handle variable-resolution granularities in computationally intensive algorithms. A multiprocessor architecture, Remps, is proposed based on these design methodologies. The Remps architecture is generalized from the Cedar, HEP, Cray X- MP, Trac, NYU ultracomputer, S-l, Pumps, Chip, and SAM projects. Our goal is to provide a multiprocessor research model for developing design methodologies, multiprocessing and multitasking supports, dynamic systolic/wavefront array processors, interconnection networks, reconfiguration techniques, and performance analysis tools. These system design and operational techniques should be useful to those who are developing or evaluating multiprocessor supercomputers

Design for Social Value: Using design to improve the impact of CSR

This paper discusses the meaning of social value from the design perspective, especially in Corporate Social Responsibility practices, and the contextual issues and values derived from design, considering how companies could better use design for social value creation. The research identified consumer attitudes to corporate social value and where companies are perceived to have generated social value, and explored where design has contributed to such social value. The research illustrates that design has great potential to add value to the triple bottom line, mostly related directly to organisations, but also to areas relating to society, including the ‘lower levels of environmental degradation’ and ‘more solutions for social issues’, indicating design plays an influential role in creating socially responsible products/services. However, this research suggests that a clear definition of ‘social value’ from various perspectives and its relationship with CSR is required due to the complex and subjective nature of ‘social value’.Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC

Parallel Algorithms for Isolated and Connected Word Recognition

For years researchers have worked toward finding a way to allow people to talk to machines in the same manner a person communicates to another person. This verbal man to machine interface, called speech recognition, can be grouped into three types: isolated word recognition, connected word recognition, and continuous speech recognition. Isolated word recognizers recognize single words with distinctive pauses before and after them. Continuous speech recognizers recognize speech spoken as one person speaks to another, continuously without pauses. Connected word recognition is an extension of isolated word recognition which recognizes groups of words spoken continuously. A group of words must have distinctive pauses before and after it, and the number of words in a group is limited to some small value (typically less than six). If these types of recognition systems are to be successful in the real world, they must be speaker independent and support a large vocabulary. They also must be able to recognize the speech input accurately and in real time. Currently there is no system which can meet all of these criteria because a vast amount of computations are needed. This report examines the use of parallel processing to reduce the computation time for speech recognition. Two different types of parallel architectures are considered here, the Single Instruction stream - Multiple Data (S1MD) machine and the VLSI processor array. The SIMD machine is chosen for its flexibility, which makes it a good candidate for testing new speech recognition algorithms. The VLSI processor array is selected as being good for a dedicated recognition system because of its simple processors and fixed interconnections. This report involves designing SIMD systems and VLSI processor arrays for both isolated and connected word recognition systems. These architectures are evaluated and contrasted in terms of the number of processors needed, the interprocessor connections required, and the “power” each processor needs to achieve real time recognition. The results show that an SIMD machine using 100 processors, each with an MC68000 processor, can recognize isolated words in real time using a 20 KHz sampling rate and a 1,000 word vocabulary

Engines and Innovation: Lewis Laboratory and American Propulsion Technology

This book is an institutional history of the NASA Lewis Research Center, located in Cleveland, Ohio, from 1940, when Congress authorized funding for a third laboratory for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, through the 1980s. The history of the laboratory is discussed in relation to the development of American propulsion technology, with particular focus on the transition in the 1940s from the use of piston engines in airplanes to jet propulsion and that from air-breathing engines to rocket technology when the National Aeronautics and Space Administration was established in 1958. The personalities and research philosophies of the people who shaped the history of the laboratory are discussed, as is the relationship of Lewis Research Center to the Case Institute of Technology