What if we turned the entire Internet into a Supercomputer?

[wonder]

What if we turned the entire Internet (read all connected physical devices) into a Supercomputer?
Imagine the kind of simulations that could be ran, imagine the scientific findings and problems that could be solved!

If we're able to simulate part of the Universe with just 8000 CPUs, imagine doing so with 6.4 billion interconnected devices!

As a species, why aren't we doing this right now?

 

[Lahksman]

We are already doing this.
It's called grid computing (wiki-link).

There are several projects on wich you can register to share a part of you cpu (cpu-scavenging). I know that it's been used in the past to crack sattelite codes for "free" sattelite-tv.

 

[wonder]

@Lahksman, I am aware of that, but the number of CPUs isn't still high enough.

It would be cool to have a "supercomputing day" once a year, where 97% (minus essential services) of all of the devices in the world compute / simulate / solve a common goal.

 

[Beja]

If computer manufacturers divided the HDD and Memory blocks into personal and public sectors, then your suggestion can be realized. Users can only use the public sector through the super computer. you can also buy a dedicated "Node" of the super computer. solutions like finding the next prime number will be easy and quick.

 

[An Schi]

Well, who knows what google is doing with all the android devices...

 

[Cableguy]

If computer manufacturers divided the HDD and Memory blocks into personal and public sectors, then your suggestion can be realized. Users can only use the public sector through the super computer. you can also buy a dedicated "Node" of the super computer. solutions like finding the next prime number will be easy and quick.

I can see a very big issue with that approach...

Imagine that sensible DATA is stored in someone's device, and that for whatever reason, that devices falls of grid ( no network service/ no wifi, no nothing)... but that DATA was needed NOW! how to solve this? Data redundancy would render the concept of a Global Computing Network half-powered (?)

Plus, only "geek" type of users have real concerns about this kind of issues, and the common user will never understand why should the device HE OWNS AND PAID FOR be used for someone else's benefit?

Remember SETI@home? Would you call it a success story?

 

[Beja]

Regarding the issue of why should one give away part of his computer that paid for, I think the answer is simple, and it's because he is not giving it away to someone else, but to a global community that he's part of it, so still he has interest in that part of his computer, and will benefit directly from the power of super computer, and indirectly from the results of the works of others.

On the other issue, if a computer is down then I think the data should be redundant like resolving domain names in DNS servers.. and the system should be able to automatically re-scale (whether down or up).

 

[moster67]

Bit coin mining

 

[Beja]

Bit coin mining

I think bitcoin is the biggest scam in the history of mankind since we emerged out of the forest. I did not and will not put a penny in cloud. Winds will carry it away.. We had a total blackout experience in New Jersey during hurricane Sandy a about 2 weeks. Power was mocked out and we had no cellphones working let alone the internet.. Police imposed curfew at night because in total darkness criminals work. But still we could buy bread (until finished) from the store that used candles.. But all with cash.. No credit cards accepted. The positive side of this was that we lived the stone age for two weeks.. Hello bitcoin!

 

[An Schi]

This whole concept might work if we would live in a better world.
But i don't trust politicians, i don't trust big economic players, i don't trust the police and i don't trust anyone working at an university or any other scientific business.

 

[udg]

The positive side of this was that we lived the stone age for two weeks

Once a major and prolonged blackout will hit our civilized world..we will think of that "stone age" as a "golden age"
I fear we're too dependent on electricity, electronics and the likes.

 

[Beja]

Once a major and prolonged blackout will hit our civilized world..we will think of that "stone age" as a "golden age"
I fear we're too dependent on electricity, electronics and the likes.

I mentioned the stone age because that was live glimpse of history so I considered it a tour back in time.. not because (necessarily) it was golden age. Isn't it nice to ride a time machine and see live what was going on a thousand year ago?

 

[Beja]

This whole concept might work if we would live in a better world.
But i don't trust politicians, i don't trust big economic players, i don't trust the police and i don't trust anyone working at an university or any other scientific business.

I also don't trust politicians and big money players because this folk sell us lies. When I bought insurance policy for my car, the company told me if I had accident don't tell police you were wrong.. very sad to hear someone tells you to lie, how about if I was wrong and never lied in my life? On the other hand, police and research community are people like myself, simple people trying to make a living and I directly benefit from their work, so I have no reason not to trust them. Bitcoin falls in the first category and I don't trust it, because no one until now assumed responsibility for it.. it's a pie-in-the-sky. If something can't work offline, then I don't buy it online. that's it.