The Japanese K Computer, manufactured by Fujitsu, has recently been overtaken by an IBM supercomputer, Sequoia, as the fastest supercomputer in the world.

With the newly-installed Sequoia supercomputer - which was manufactured at the IBM campus in Rochester - taking the top position in a list of 500 fastest supercomputers, it is for the first time in two years that the US has ranked at the top of the list. Incidentally, IBM turned out to be the leading manufacturer, as it claimed 5 out of the top 10 spots on the list.

The world's fastest IBM Sequoia supercomputer has been installed at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory of the US Department of Energy. The computer will largely be used for carrying out simulations which will help extend the life of aging nuclear weapons; and thus doing away with the need for conducting real-world underground tests.

The top-notch speed of the world's fastest Sequoia computer can be gauged from the fact that the device takes just about an hour to complete tedious calculations which otherwise would take 320 years to complete if 6.7 billion people worked non-stop on hand calculators.

Noting that the "underlying computing capabilities" which the fastest Sequoia computer provides gives the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) "increased confidence in the nation's nuclear deterrent," NNSA administrator Thomas D'Agostino said that the IBM supercomputer "represents continued American leadership in high performance computing."