Philip Emeagwali

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Learn more about using Wikipedia for research Jump to: navigation, search Philip Emeagwali (born in 1954) is a Nigerian-born computer scientist/geologist ho as one o! t o inners o! the 19"9 #or$on %ell &ri'e, a pri'e !rom the ())), !or his use o! the *onnection +achine supercomputer , a machine !eaturing over -5,... parallel processors , to help anal/'e petroleum !iel$s0

Contents
1hi$e2 1 %iograph/ 3 4 ar$s 5 *ourt case 4 *laims 5 6e!erences - )7ternal lin8s

[edit] Biography
)meag ali as born in 48ure, Nigeria in 19540112 9e $roppe$ out o! school in 19-: because o! the Nigerian civil ar0 ;hen he turne$ !ourteen, he as conscripte$ into the %ia!ran arm/0 4!ter the ar he complete$ a high-school e<uivalenc/ through sel!-stu$/ an$ came to the =nite$ >tates to stu$/ at universit/ un$er a scholarship0 9e receive$ a bachelor?s $egree in mathematics !rom @regon >tate =niversit/ in 19::0 9e receive$ a master?s $egree in environmental engineering !rom #eorge ;ashington =niversit/ in 19"1, an$ another master?s $egree in +athematics !rom the =niversit/ o! +ar/lan$, *ollege &ar8 in 19"-0 9e also receive$ a post-master?s $egree in ocean, coastal an$ marine engineering !rom #eorge ;ashington =niversit/ in that /ear0 9e as also or8ing as a civil engineer at the %ureau o! Aan$ 6eclamation in ;/oming $uring this perio$0

[edit] Awards
)meag ali receive$ the B1,...132 19"9 #or$on %ell &ri'e, base$ on an application o! the *+-3 massivel/-parallel computer !or oil-reservoir mo$eling0 9e on in the Cprice/per!ormanceC categor/, ith a per!ormance !igure o! 4.. +!lops/B1+, correspon$ing to an absolute per!ormance o! 501 #!lops0 (Dhe inning entr/ in the Cpea8 per!ormanceC categor/ that /ear , coinci$entall/ also !or oil-relate$ seismic $ata processing on a *+-3 , actuall/ achieve$ - #!lops, or 5.. +!lops/B1+, but the Eu$ges $eci$e$ not to a ar$ both pri'es to the same team0)152 Dhis simulation as the !irst program to appl/ a pseu$o-time approach to reservoir mo$eling0142 4part !rom the pri'e itsel!, there is no evi$ence that )meag ali?s or8 as ever accepte$ !or publication in the peerrevie e$ scienti!ic literature, nor that it ha$ an/ other lasting impact on the !iel$ o! high-per!ormance computing0152 Nevertheless, base$ on the %ell &ri'e, he has since receive$ numerous !urther a ar$s1-2, ranging !rom one !rom the ;orl$ %an8-(+F 4!rica *lub to being vote$ the C55th-greatest 4!rican o! all timeC in a surve/ b/ New African maga'ine01:2 9is achievements ere <uote$ in a speech b/ %ill *linton as an e7ample o! hat Nigerians coul$ achieve hen given the opportunit/01"2

[edit] Court case

)meag ali stu$ie$ !or a &h0G0 $egree !rom the =niversit/ o! +ichigan !rom 19": through 19910 9is thesis as not accepte$ b/ a committee o! internal an$ e7ternal e7aminers an$ thus he as not a ar$e$ the $egree0 )meag ali !ile$ a court challenge, claiming that the $ecision as a violation o! his civil rights an$ that the universit/ ha$ $iscriminate$ against him in several a/s because o! his race0 Dhe court challenge as $ismisse$, as as an appeal to the +ichigan state *ourt o! 4ppeals0192

[edit] Claims
/ his article or section needs sources or references that appear in relia!le, third"party pu!lications#

i8i/(ma ge:Huest &rimar/ sources an$ sources a!!iliate$ ith the subEect o! the article are generall/ not su!!icient !or a ionIboo ;i8ipe$ia article0 &lease inclu$e more appropriate citations !rom reliable sources, or $iscuss the issue on 8the tal8 page0 50svg/ i Dhis article has been tagge$ since December 20070 8i/(mage :Huestio nIboo850svg (n intervie s11.2: )meag ali sa/s he !ormulate$ ne 1citation needed211.2 partial $i!!erential e<uations !or moving li<ui$s an$ gases such as oil an$ natural gas !lo ithin the )arth?s interior0 )meag ali sa/s he prove$1citation needed211.2 that the use o! onl/ Girichlet t/pe boun$ar/ con$itions /iel$s more accurate numerical solutions near petroleum pro$uction ells0 )meag ali sa/s he $erive$ error stopping criterion !or computational !lui$ $/namics so!t are01citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he, in 19"", programme$ a *onnection +achine ith 3,.4" processors, using those e<uations an$ criterion, to simulate an oil reservoir011.2 )meag ali sa/s this simulation implemente$ the !irst1citation needed211.2 petroleum reservoir mo$el on a massivel/ parallel computer0 )meag ali sa/s this simulation per!orme$ the orl$?s !astest1citation needed211.2 computation o! 501 billion calculations per secon$ in 19""0 )meag ali sa/s this simulation as the !irst program !or a massivel/ parallel computer that outper!orme$ e<uivalent programs !or conventional (vector) supercomputers,1 citation needed211.2 proving that it is possible to e!!icientl/ harness thousan$s o! parallel processors0 ((n the 19".?s, it as generall/ believe$1who?2 that 4m$ahl?s la oul$ give such $iminishing returns that it oul$ be pointless to use more than a han$!ul o! parallel processors -- it as generall/ believe$1who?2 that a !e large, e7pensive, !ast, serial processors oul$ cost less an$ have higher per!ormance than lots o! lo -cost parallel processors0 (n particular, >e/mour *ra/ !amousl/ <uippe$, C(! /ou ere plo ing a !iel$, hich oul$ /ou rather useJ D o strong o7en or 1.34 chic8ensJC112) )meag ali sa/s this simulation solve$1citation needed211.2 one o! 4merica?s 3. #ran$ *hallenges: accuratel/ computing ho oil !lo s un$ergroun$ )meag ali sa/s he rote a 1...-page report $escribing the ne e<uations an$ ho )meag ali implemente$ them on the *onnection +achine01citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he tol$ the petroleum in$ustr/ that the/ coul$ recover more oil b/ using massivel/ parallel computer simulations11.2 )meag ali sa/s he $iscovere$ the analog/ bet een Garc/?s e<uations use$ in petroleum reservoir simulations an$ geostrophic e<uations use$ in eather !orecasting01citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he programme$ the largest eather !orecasting simulation (13" million points) in 199. on a *onnection +achine ith -5,55- processors1citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s this simulation set orl$ recor$ !or parallel computer spee$up o! -555- in 199., 1citation needed211.2 e7perimentall/ $emonstrating that thousan$s o! parallel processors can be e!!icientl/ harnesse$0 Do$a/ this !act is common 8no le$ge, 8no n as scalabilit/0 )meag ali sa/s he !ormulate$ the counter-intuitive spee$up para$o7 hich states that there are t o $i!!erent theoretical spee$up o! parallel computers, an$ prove$ that both ans ers are right01citation needed2 11.2 )meag ali sa/s he $iscovere$ the counter-intuitive h/percube para$o701citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he !ormulate$ the theor/ o! ea8 nearest-neighbors in parallel computing01 citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he $emonstrate$ that the most communication-e!!icient parallel programs must be computation-ine!!icient01citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he intro$uce$ the concept o! net or8 !re<uenc/ !or parallel computers01citation needed2 11.2 )meag ali sa/s he $iscovere$ chiralit/ in parallel programming01citation needed211.2 )meag ali sa/s he $iscovere$ enantiomeric net or8s01citation needed211.2

)meag ali sa/s he $iscovere$ the relationship bet een sphere pac8ing an$ !ast computing01citation needed211.2 9o ever, other people1who?2 $ispute these claims0