title: Improved speedup bounds for parallel alpha-Beta search.
abstract: In this paper we investigate the ``mandatory-work-first'' approach to parallel alpha-beta search first proposed by Akl, Barnard, and Doran. This approach is based on a version of alpha-beta search without deep cutoffs and a two-stage evaluation process, the second stage of which is often pruned. Our analysis shows that for best-first ordering on the lookahead tree, this approach provides greater speedup than the Palphabeta tree-splitting technique, and that for worst-first ordering, mandatory work first provides only slightly worse speedup than Palphabeta.
authors.affiliation: Department of Computer Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706.
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Finkel
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Fishburn