Efficient Sets - A Balancing Act

Abstract

Capsule ReviewIn late 1991 I organized an international programming competition for the Standard ML community.Each entrant implemented the 'set of integers' abstract data type, matching a signature that I provided.Prizes (donated by MIT Press) were awarded in two categories: fastest program (on a particular benchmark), and most elegant yet still efficient program.More than a dozen entries were received; the top four entries in the speed category are listed here:1