
5.4. Multi-threading and parallel processing 185
at the same time, or appear to execute at the same time. One could perhaps
say that the concept was ahead of its time and until recently most computer
programs were not written as multi-threaded applications. However, now m u l ti-
threading’s time has come because virtually every new computer is designed
around a multi-core processor that tr u ly allows a program to do several tasks at
the same time.
In theory, ray tracing is an ideal application for implementation in a parallel
processor because each ray is, to all intents and purp os es , independent of all the
others. Thus in systems which provide ...