Parallel Algorithm
A Parallel Algorithm is an algorithm that performs steps in parallel.
- Context:
- It can range from being a Parallel Single-Batch Algorithm to being a Parallel Iterative Algorithm.
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- Example(s):
- Counter-Example(s):
- See: Composite Algorithm.
References
2009
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_algorithm
- In computer science, a parallel algorithm, as opposed to a traditional sequential (or serial) algorithm, is an algorithm which can be executed a piece at a time on many different processing devices, and then put back together again at the end to get the correct result.
Some algorithms are easy to divide up into pieces like this. For example, splitting up the job of checking all of the numbers from one to a hundred thousand to see which are primes could be done by assigning a subset of the numbers to each available processor, and then putting the list of positive results back together.
Most of the available algorithms to compute pi (π), on the other hand, cannot be easily split up into parallel portions. They require the results from a preceding step to effectively carry on with the next step. Such problems are called inherently serial problems. Iterative numerical methods, such as Newton's method or the three-body problem, are also algorithms which are inherently serial. Some problems are very difficult to parallelize, although they are recursive. One such example is the depth-first search of graphs.
- In computer science, a parallel algorithm, as opposed to a traditional sequential (or serial) algorithm, is an algorithm which can be executed a piece at a time on many different processing devices, and then put back together again at the end to get the correct result.