Multithreaded languages for scientific and technical computing

An overview of language support for parallel technical computing is provided. The rationale for multithreaded languages, in which the programmer explicitly specifies what work is to be carried out by multiple processors and how their activities should be coordinated, is described. The discussion begins with an introduction to the general models for manipulating multiple threads and how they are incorporated into programming languages. The wide variety of features for creating multiple threads, scheduling their execution, synchronizing their activities, and sharing data among them are then examined. Examples in a simplified, FORTRAN-like notation are included. It is shown how the language features are distributed among commercial compiler implementations. Some less traditional approaches to multithreaded language support are presented to provide a glimpse at what might be expected in future languages and compilers