Systems: the Big Picture Beyond Software

WCOP 2015 breakout group summaryMay 4, 2015

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People

● N-1 PhD students● 1 senior TCS scientist

Domains of systems

● Internet of Things● Collective Intelligence Systems● High-performance computing● Multi-robot systems● “Real” services (travel, hospitality,

manufacturing)● General systems

Concrete examples of systems

● Distribution & enterprise systems – Energy, goods – e.g. Walmart, Home Depot

● Self-driving car positioning– GPS coordinate propagation and estimation

● Computing grid– Great 5000 – experimental platform for HPC

research

Systems definition

● Boundary between system and environment● Within: parts and interconnections; in-out interfaces● Alternatives:

– collection of agents

– collections of knowledge

● System purpose (its goal) vs. system “symptoms” (mechanisms that system uses)– Safe driving is a purpose

– V2V communication & concrete technologies are symptoms

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Characterization of systems

● Multiplicity of agents in a system– Coordination, communication, knowledge sharing

– Size, scale, complexity, humans

● Multi-domain, multidisciplinary nature– Social, economic, psychological, political issues

– E.g., timezones, culture, resistance to change

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Challenges

● System pathologies – Patterns of recurring system problems

– E.g., cost of upgrading >> cost of patching; synchronous upgrade

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Challenges

● Change, evolution over large period of time– Endless need for improvement (naïve expectations)

– Endless disruption (merging and collapsing of companies)

– Saturation of resource capacity

– Design for the future

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Challenges

● Legacy systems (10-25+ y.o.)– Some patterns are 150+ y.o. (goods distribution)

● Silos– Not designed for interaction

– Need to interact

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Challenges

● Adaptation for unexpected environment– “Cannot program for every circumstance” vs.

apparent need for it

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Possible solutions

● Holistic thinking● Encouraging competition● Automation: blessing or curse?● Standards and protocols

– Establish rules, blame the violators

● Top-down vs. bottom-up vs. meet-in-the middle methodologies

Repurposing

Conclusion

● “We don't really solve problems – just push them onto other people”