Cooperative Coding There are international agencies trying to help economically disadvantaged people improve their lives. Around the world, many of these people live in underdeveloped areas. North Korea, some places in China, and some African countries are examples of places that are underdeveloped. Knowing the exact locations that suffer the most poverty is necessary for the aid-givers. The problem, then, is to identify the most underdeveloped areas, which are likely to contain the most economically disadvantaged people. Work with another classmate to solve this problem. One algorithm would be: 1. Send teams of surveyors to these locations. 2. Interview the people who lived there. Can you see the problems with this algorithm? Which of these reasons would keep the results from being helpful and accurate? A. Too expensive. B. Too large an area. C. Too time-consuming. D. Results quickly out-of-date. You are correct if you selected all of them. Sometimes the same problem can be solved by using different algorithms. For example, satellite imagery that shows areas illuminated at night can be used to find areas in need of assistance. These are the areas that show no light. Examine the photograph from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP). The image shows the entire Earth in nighttime. The areas of light are points of illumination from houses, factories, businesses, streetlights, and so on. An algorithm can be created based on this image to help identify areas that are economically disadvantaged. 1. Make a hypothesis why areas with less illumination may have a need for economic aid. 2. Develop an algorithm to find the areas around the world where the most economically disadvantaged people live. Begin by breaking down the overall problem into smaller subproblems. Writing Algorithms NASA Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Chapter Ch Ch C ap ap ap ap ap ap ap p t te te te te te te te e e r r r r r r r r 2 2 2 2 Solving S S S S S S S S S S S ol ol ol ol ol ol o l l v v ng ng g ng ng ng ng ng g g g Problems P P P P P P P P ro ro ro ro r r r 37