Intel is concerned about their multicore roadmap. Chips could potentially have 32 cores within three years, but Intel may have to find other things to do with all their transistors until software can catch up and take better advantage of so many cores. This is not the first time software has failed to keep pace with hardware.
Next questions: What effects might the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis have on software evolution? (As interpreted by Ken Iverson re: programming languages. (pdf))
What contraints or propels software evolution vs. hardware evolution?
