Smarr, Larry L.

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) was created in February, 1985, to provide supercomputers to address problems such as predicting tornadoes and wind sheers, analyzing urban traffic patterns and studying the fundamental interactions of atomic particles. 1

The Center for Supercomputer Research and Development was established in December, 1984, to build the "Cedar" supercomputer, a high-performance, large-scale multiprocessing computer destined to allow the pursuit of research in fields such as meteorology, physics, astronomy and the computer-aided design of computer circuits. 2

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications' work stations will be used for communications, high quality two- and three-dimensional color graphics, advanced scientific TEXT processing, symbolic manipulation, artificial intelligence and general program development and data analysis. 3

Besides forecasting the weather, supercomputers can be used to simulate the origins of the universe and to design cars and aircraft. 4

The supercomputers' artificial intelligence could monitor nuclear plants to help prevent major accidents. 5

1. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign News Bureau News

2. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign News Bureau News

3. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign News Bureau News, October 14, 1985, p. 2.

4. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign News Bureau News, February 3, 1986, p. 3.

5. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign News Bureau News, June 16, 1986, p. 1.

From the guide to the National Center for Supercomputing Applications Subject File, 1978-2000, (University of Illinois Archives)