The future of supercomputing for North Carolina companies and universities will be discussed at an upcoming conference called "Grids: The Next Big Thing." MCNC, a family of private, nonprofit corporations in North Carolina dedicated to technology development, is hosting the conference at 11 a.m. on Oct. 27 at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel in the Research Triangle Park. David Rizzo, MCNC's chief executive, will lead the discussion about how North Carolina's biotechnology and engineering technology companies can use a statewide grid computing system to further research and develop jobs.