CI Pathways: Parallel Computing Overview

This session will explore the motivation behind parallel programming and provide an overview of the relevant hardware, including a brief history of its development. Participants will learn about the three most important paradigms in modern parallel programming: threads, GPUs, and distributed clusters. The session will cover key paradigms of parallel programming, different types of parallel architectures in supercomputing clusters, and the historical evolution of parallel computing hardware. By the end of the session, attendees will have a solid understanding of these concepts and their practical applications in today's computing landscape.

Pre-requisites:

• Basic Python programming, such as NumPy/SciPy
• Basic C programming for the OpenMP session (high-level code, should not be disorienting to anyone)
• To participate in the hands-on exercises, you must know the basics of using NCSA's Delta

CI Pathways is a training program led by the National Center for Supercomputing Applications and the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center funded by NSF award 2417789. For more information about the program, please visit the CI Pathways webpage on HPC-Moodle.