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Fast Sorting on a Distributed-Memory Architecture

We consider the often-studied problem of sorting, for a parallel computer. Given an input array distributed evenly over p processors, the task is to compute the sorted output array, also distributed over the p processors. Many existing algorithms take the approach of approximately load-balancing the output, leaving each processor with Θ(n/p) elements. However, in many cases, approximate load-balancing leads to inefficiencies in both the sorting itself and in further uses of the data after sorting. We provide a deterministic parallel sorting algorithm that uses parallel selection to produce any output distribution exactly, particularly one that is perfectly load-balanced. Furthermore, when using a comparison sort, this algorithm is 1-optimal in both computation and communication. We provide an empirical study that illustrates the efficiency of exact data splitting, and shows an improvement over two sample sort algorithms. / Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:MIT/oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/7418
Date01 1900
CreatorsCheng, David R., Shah, Viral, Gilbert, John R., Edelman, Alan
Source SetsM.I.T. Theses and Dissertation
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeArticle
Format122908 bytes, application/pdf
RelationComputer Science (CS);

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