1997 General Studies, all questions
UPSC Prelims 1997 · General Studies
Question 40: Science and Technology
The world’s fastest computer has been able to perform (as of Dec. 1996)
a106 operations per second
b109 operations per second
c1012 operations per second
d1015 operations per second
AnswerThe answer is (c).
As of December 1996, the fastest computer had reached about one trillion (10^12) operations per second, the teraflop barrier, first crossed by a US supercomputer. The petaflop (10^15) came only in 2008, while the megaflop (10^6) and gigaflop (10^9) belong to machines of earlier decades.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) 10^6 operations per second is the megaflop range, long surpassed by 1996.
- (b) 10^9 operations per second, a gigaflop, had been reached by supercomputers in the 1980s.
- (c) Right: 10^12 operations per second, one teraflop.
- (d) 10^15 operations per second, a petaflop, was first reached in 2008.
Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 1997, General Studies. UPSC's own paper isn't online; the words are from a published compilation. The paper on upsc.gov.in.