GS PrelimsScience and TechnologyInformation and Communication Technology1997

The world's fastest computer has been able to perform (as of Dec. 1996)

A

106 operations per second

B

109 operations per second

C

1012 operations per second

D

1015 operations per second

Correct Answer: Option C

Explanation

The question asks about the performance capability of the world's fastest computer as of December 1996. Computer performance is often measured in Floating Point Operations Per Second (FLOPS).In June 1996, the ASCI Red supercomputer, built by Intel, became the first computer to achieve performance exceeding 1 TeraFLOPS (1 TFLOPS).1 TeraFLOPS = 1012 FLOPS (operations per second).Therefore, as of December 1996, the world's fastest computer was capable of performing around 1012 operations per second.

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