PHILOSOPHERS

Introduction

In the realm of computer science, particularly in the study of concurrent programming and synchronization, the 'Dining Philosophers Problem' stands as a classic illustration of the challenges inherent in resource allocation and deadlock avoidance. Originating from a simple thought experiment involving philosophers seated around a dining table, this problem serves as a poignant metaphor for the complexities encountered in designing robust, multi-threaded software systems. In this introduction, we delve into the essence of the Dining Philosophers Problem, exploring its significance, theoretical underpinnings, and practical implications in modern computing.

Overview

Here are the things you need to know if you want to succeed in this assignment:

One or more philosophers sit at a round table. There is a large bowl of spaghetti in the middle of the table.
The philosophers alternatively eat, think, or sleep. While they are eating, they are not thinking nor sleeping; while thinking, they are not eating nor sleeping; and, of course, while sleeping, they are not eating nor thinking.
There are also forks on the table. There are as many forks as philosophers.
Because serving and eating spaghetti with only one fork is very inconvenient, a philosopher takes their right and their left forks to eat, one in each hand.
When a philosopher has finished eating, they put their forks back on the table and start sleeping. Once awake, they start thinking again. The simulation stops when a philosopher dies of starvation.
Every philosopher needs to eat and should never starve.
Philosophers don’t speak with each other.
Philosophers don’t know if another philosopher is about to die.
No need to say that philosophers should avoid dying!

Rules to Follow

Below are the program arguments required for the simulation:


number_of_philosophers time_to_die time_to_eat time_to_sleep [number_of_times_each_philosopher_must_eat]

number_of_philosophers: The number of philosophers and also the number of forks.
time_to_die (in milliseconds): If a philosopher doesn’t start eating time_to_die milliseconds since the beginning of their last meal or the beginning of the simulation, they die.
time_to_eat (in milliseconds): The time it takes for a philosopher to eat. During that time, they will need to hold two forks.
time_to_sleep (in milliseconds): The time a philosopher will spend sleeping.
number_of_times_each_philosopher_must_eat (optional argument): If all philosophers have eaten at least number_of_times_each_philosopher_must_eat times, the simulation stops. If not specified, the simulation stops when a philosopher dies.

Each philosopher has a number ranging from 1 to number_of_philosophers.
Philosopher number 1 sits next to philosopher number number_of_philosophers. Any other philosopher number N sits between philosopher number N - 1 and philosopher number N + 1.
Any state change of a philosopher must be formatted as follows:


timestamp_in_ms X has taken a fork
timestamp_in_ms X is eating
timestamp_in_ms X is sleeping
timestamp_in_ms X is thinking
timestamp_in_ms X died

A displayed state message should not be mixed up with another message.
A message announcing a philosopher died should be displayed no more than 10 ms after the actual death of the philosopher.
Again, philosophers should avoid dying!

Mandatory Part

Each philosopher should be a thread.
There is one fork between each pair of philosophers. Therefore, if there are several philosophers, each philosopher has a fork on their left side and a fork on their right side. If there is only one philosopher, there should be only one fork on the table.
To prevent philosophers from duplicating forks, you should protect the forks state with a mutex for each of them.

Bonus Part

The program of the bonus part takes the same arguments as the mandatory program. It has to comply with the requirements of the Global rules chapter.
Specific rules for the bonus part: