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Experience with a Genetic Algorithm Implemented on a Multiprocessor ComputerNumerical experiments were conducted to find out the extent to which a Genetic Algorithm (GA) may benefit from a multiprocessor implementation, considering, on one hand, that analyses of individual designs in a population are independent of each other so that they may be executed concurrently on separate processors, and, on the other hand, that there are some operations in a GA that cannot be so distributed. The algorithm experimented with was based on a gaussian distribution rather than bit exchange in the GA reproductive mechanism, and the test case was a hub frame structure of up to 1080 design variables. The experimentation engaging up to 128 processors confirmed expectations of radical elapsed time reductions comparing to a conventional single processor implementation. It also demonstrated that the time spent in the non-distributable parts of the algorithm and the attendant cross-processor communication may have a very detrimental effect on the efficient utilization of the multiprocessor machine and on the number of processors that can be used effectively in a concurrent manner. Three techniques were devised and tested to mitigate that effect, resulting in efficiency increasing to exceed 99 percent.
Document ID
20000099750
Acquisition Source
Langley Research Center
Document Type
Preprint (Draft being sent to journal)
Authors
Plassman, Gerald E.
(Computer Sciences Corp. Hampton, VA United States)
Sobieszczanski-Sobieski, Jaroslaw
(NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA United States)
Date Acquired
August 19, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2000
Subject Category
Computer Programming And Software
Report/Patent Number
AIAA Paper 2000-4844
Meeting Information
Meeting: Multidisciplinary Analysis and Optimization
Location: Long Beach, CA
Country: United States
Start Date: September 6, 2000
End Date: September 8, 2000
Sponsors: Department of the Air Force, International Society for Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization, NASA Headquarters, American Inst. of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
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