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Asynchronous Iterative Algorithms

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Synonyms

Asynchronous iterations; Asynchronous iterative computations

Definition

In iterative algorithms, a grid of data points are updated iteratively until some convergence criterion is met. The update of each data point depends on the latest updates of its neighboring points. Asynchronous iterative algorithms refer to a class of parallel iterative algorithms that are capable of relaxing strict data dependencies, hence not requiring the latest updates when they are not ready, while still ensuring convergence. Such relaxation may result in the use of inconsistent data which potentially may lead to an increased iteration count and hence increased computational operations. On the other hand, the time spent on waiting for the latest updates performed on remote processors may be reduced. Where waiting time dominates the computation, a parallel program based on an asynchronous algorithm may outperform its synchronous counterparts.

Discussion

Introduction

Scaling application performance to...

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Kollias, G., Grama, A.Y., Li, Z. (2011). Asynchronous Iterative Algorithms. In: Padua, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Parallel Computing. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-09766-4_231

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