ECE 498 AL Machine Problem 1.2
Data Parallel Reduction

1)  Copy /home/ac/stratton/498_admin/mps/mp1.2-reduction.tgz and extract it
where you'd like to work on it.  We suggest having it within your sdk/projects
directory.

2)  Edit the source files vector_reduction.cu and vector_reduction_kernel.cu to complete 
    the functionality of the parallel addition reduction on the device.  A reduction 
    is combining all elements of an array into a single value using some associative operator.  
    Data-parallel implementations take advantage of this associativity to compute many operations 
    in parallel, computing the result in O(lg N) total steps without increasing the total number 
    of operations performed.  For this assignment, the size of the array is guaranteed to be exactly 
    512 elements.  

3)  As the consistency semantics of global memory are not well defined, the reduction 
    should be performed using a __shared__ memory array.  

3)  There are two modes of operation for the application.  

    No arguments:  The application will create a randomly initialized array to 
    process.  After the device kernel is invoked, it will compute 
    the correct solution value using the CPU, and compare that solution with 
    the device-computed solution.  If it matches (within a certain tolerance), 
    if will print out "Test PASSED" to the screen before exiting.  

    One argument:  The application will initialize the input array with 
    the values found in the file provided as an argument.

    In either case, the program will print out the final result of the CPU and
    GPU computations, and whether or not the comparison passed.  

4)  To submit your solution, execute the mp1.2submit.sh script with your netid
and a .tgz file containing your entire submission, including the file
containing the answers to the questions.  

    The .tgz file should contain the assignment folder provided, with all the changes 
    and additions you have made to the source code.  In addition, provide a text file, Word Document, or PDF file with your answers to the following questions.  

    1.  How many times does your thread block synchronize to reduce the array of 512 elements to a 
        single value?

    2.  What is the minimum, maximum, and average number of "real" operations that a thread will perform?  "Real" operations are those that directly contribute to the final reduction value.  


Grading:  

Your submission will be graded on the following parameters.  

Demo/knowledge: 25%
    - Produces correct result output for test inputs

Functionality:  40%
    - Uses an O(n) operation data-parallel reduction algorithm.

Report: 35%
    - Answer to question 1: 15%, answer to question 2: 20%