The Grid. Computer artwork representing The Grid, a network of supercomputers that will allow access to their processing power from a standard desktop computer. The Grid operates in a similar way to the internet, but instead of simply sharing documents and data it can share system resources. A user on a computer in one part of the world can use the network of supercomputers to perform calculations far beyond the capabilities of the computer through which it is accessed. Problems in particle physics, medicine, astronomy, engineering and many other fields can then be solved without leaving the laboratory.