Dining philosophers

[compilerbitch]

(from the paper I'm currently working on. Look at the Wikipedia article if you don't already know about the problem)

In other news, it seems that I can taste sugar again. No wasabi peas for me for a while. :-)

Comments

[det3.livejournal.com]

Heh. I first learned of that dilemma when I read Tannenbaum. Stuck with me ever since.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

For me I think it would probably have been a lecture by Tony Hoare I went to in 1990 or 91, or maybe reading his CSP book, I don't remember. It's a fun problem. It's in my paper because it's a classic example in model checking, so (of course) I couldn't resist including the silly drawing!

[pinguhateseng.livejournal.com]

I had a read but...call me awfully practical, but can't they just take turns to take the plate with the pasta and using one fork, twist and plop appropriate amounts onto their plates? It's not that hard...is it?

I realise it's meant to illustrate a computing issue...'fraid I don't really get the gist though....erm.

Enough of showing my complete ignornace :)

[pinguhateseng.livejournal.com]

Re-reading though and pondering...I get the idea better with the "rice and chopstick" issue, assuming each philosopher only has one chopstick.

Hm.

Interesting.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

It's not meant to make realistic sense -- it's actually just a way of making a problem in the theory of concurrency a bit easier to justify. I like mageboltrat's solution best (see comment below)

[pinguhateseng.livejournal.com]

Hee hee that *is* rather funny. And true.

[mageboltrat.livejournal.com]

Microsoft as always came up with an innovative solution to this problem

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

I think that just made my office wall... ;-)

[fatdog.livejournal.com]

i think the answer is either

a) None of them can use a fork because none of them has any arms.

or

b) Philospohers don't like Italian food.



Do I win £5 ?

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

There's always one as has to complain, isn't there? ;-)

[4zumanga.livejournal.com]

I didn't know there was much left to say about the Philospher's problem. Then again, I spend all my time solving NP-complete problems, and you'd think except for finally answering if P = NP or not, there wasn't much left to say there.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

I'm certainly not saying anything new about it. :-)

It seems to be an expected rite-of-passage that any new model checker should include a dining philosophers sample. So I did, but couldn't stop myself doing the ubiquitous silly drawing. :-)

[mageboltrat.livejournal.com]

nor could I :)