Re:Conterintuitive facts in mathematics, CS, and physics
by hinkley on Tuesday October 05, 2021 @07:38PM
(#28767166)
What really throws people for a loop is the wait time after queuing starts. People expect the wait time to drop once arrivals return to normal, but there just isn't capacity to catch up.
In the real world, except at the DMV, people give up and shorten the queue (or don't join it to begin with), causing the arrival rate to go below nominal allowing the workers to catch up. In must-have or automated situations they see the full consequences of under-provisioning.
Re:Conterintuitive facts in mathematics, CS, and physics
by stevetodd on Tuesday October 05, 2021 @08:55PM
(#28767783)
This also explains the supply chain issues we are experiencing now because of the move to just-in-time manufacturing across the board.
Re:Conterintuitive facts in mathematics, CS, and physics
by galaxyLogic on Wednesday October 06, 2021 @12:58AM
(#28769366)
Cool. Ships waiting to dock on California cost. This explains it!
It's queuing theory in general, related to "utilization". The utilization curve is always shaped the same; 50% utilization always doubles waiting time, and the curve is practically vertical when you get to 99% utilization. That's what explains the difference - 5.8 customers per hour, for a throughput of 6 per hour, shoves the efficiency to the almost-vertical part of the curve, which impacts waiting time.