IBM does it again.

[Zero S.]

It seems IBM has been on a roll the past couple years in doing so good Computer Science research. I mean with Super Computers, the Cell Processor ( Broadband engine lulz ) and now this:

http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/35171/118/

[Mindlessmaniac]

Very impressive. I've loosely followed the work on optical computers, and this is by far one of the most impressive advancements since the idea of an optical computer became viable. The fact that it's so small but allows for so much speed with so little power blows me away.

[Reku]

This is why they are the International Business Machine.

edit: I still don't know how Moore's Law manages to work. It makes no sense, but apparently it does?

[Mindlessmaniac]

Moore's Law has held true for quite a while now, to my knowledge. Basically, is just says that the number of transistors that can be put on a chip inexpensively will double every two years. This mainly relied on the fact that SMT at the time was larger than it is now, and the physical size of the transistors and other components were constantly shrinking. As I recall, the main issue they've been running into is physical limits to downsizing. You can only go so far before an atom is too big.

This optical transistor hybrid should allow for far smaller (think microscopic) and faster hardware as more R&D is performed. It would be nice to see at least a demo of this new hardware sometime in the next couple of years, if possible. Who knows? Maybe 20 years from now, we'll have a computer in the chest pocket of our shirt or incorporate them into something like bracelets, necklaces, etc. I'm thinking 200 gigs of space with an optical computer the size of a thumb drive would be nice.

[Zero S.]

Maybe then we could all go Johnny Mnemonic.

I'm down for that.

[Reku]

I know what Moore's Law is. I'm just surprised that it still "works," if that's the right term for it.

As far as thumbdrives go, I'm down with massive storage. The only downside would be if you lose it. With that much space and versatility, I'm bound to put my whole life to that thing.

[Mindlessmaniac]

I figured you knew Moore's Law, that explanation was just for the benefit of others. Anyway, while it still applies, some scientists think that Moore's law could be killed within the next decade or earlier. The fact that it still applies is amazing, as transistors have shrunk so much. I'm also surprised Moore's Law has held out this long.