From the most recent _Syllabus_ newsletter (an IT trade magazine):



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U San Francisco to Build First FlashMob Supercomputer

This Saturday, April 3, hundreds of computer enthusiasts will
create FlashMob I, the first FlashMob Supercomputer in the
world, and attempt to break into the Top 500 Fastest
Supercomputers on earth. Sponsored by University of San
Francisco, FlashMob I will be created on the University of
San Francisco (USF) campus, using USF student and
faculty-designed open-source software.

A FlashMob Supercomputer is created by connecting a virtually
infinite number of computers via a high-speed LAN, to work
together as a single supercomputer. A FlashMob computer,
unlike an ordinary cluster, is temporary and organized ad
hoc for the purpose of working on a single problem. It uses
volunteers and ordinary laptop PC's, and is designed to
allow anyone to create a supercomputer in a matter of hours.

"This is a radical new idea in supercomputing, as well as an
important scientific and social experiment," said John
Witchel, a graduate student and co- creator of FlashMob
Computing. "The goal of the FlashMob I project is to
demonstrate the viability of widespread supercomputing. We
hope to give ordinary citizens the power to explore and
address problems that are most important to them -- whether
it's a high-school science class looking to participate in
study of global warming, or a family impacted by breast
cancer, or even a chess club looking to build an electronic
grand-master. In short, we want to democratize
supercomputing."

For more information, visit: http://www.flashmobcomputing.org