Evil Danish Researchers Say Lines Should Be Last Come, First Served
Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark have published a study in which they suggest we've all been lining up wrong - and they know how to fix it.
Lining up for the launch of Denmark is a wonderful place with wonderful people [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127621-Apple-Fans-Camp-Out-For-iPhone-That-Doesnt-Exist-Yet]!)[/I]
What Trine Tornøe Platz and Lars Peter Østerdal, from the University of Southern Denmark, propose is this: the "first come, first served" principle of queuing is a "curse." We should not be rewarding the parking lot campers; instead, the last people to arrive should be the first to receive service [http://static.sdu.dk/mediafiles//1/9/5/%7B195881C4-8779-48E9-8C38-D935159DE32F%7Ddpbe10_2012.pdf].
What.
Their logic is this: incentivizing people to arrive early ends up causing the longest average wait times. Under their alternative model, people change their behavior, arriving at the queue at a slower rate. This alleviates the dreaded "bottleneck scenario," and thus congestion and long waits.
In an experiment involving over a hundred volunteers [http://static.sdu.dk/mediafiles//4/3/F/%7B43F80C9B-3533-4838-9E08-DE09931B9379%7Ddpbe12_2014.pdf], this seemingly crazy notion actually held water. A close second to the "last come" model is the "random order" model, a bit like how airplane boarding works, or drivers leaving a parking lot all at once after a big event. Despite the efficiency, most volunteers agreed it all felt a little unfair.
Even one of the main researchers isn't entirely convinced [http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03115gg], according to his interview with the BBC.
Now, I'm all for science trumping common sense - but this is a step too far. Who thinks this could ever be implemented? Besides, line-ups are the best time to play my 3DS. When am I going to finish Fire Emblem [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/reviews/10165-Fire-Emblem-Awakening-Review], if not when I'm stuck at the passport office for eight hours?
Source: QZ.com [http://qz.com/496525/danish-researchers-have-an-enraging-proposal-to-speed-up-queues-serve-the-last-person-first/]
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Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark have published a study in which they suggest we've all been lining up wrong - and they know how to fix it.
Lining up for the launch of Denmark is a wonderful place with wonderful people [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127621-Apple-Fans-Camp-Out-For-iPhone-That-Doesnt-Exist-Yet]!)[/I]
What Trine Tornøe Platz and Lars Peter Østerdal, from the University of Southern Denmark, propose is this: the "first come, first served" principle of queuing is a "curse." We should not be rewarding the parking lot campers; instead, the last people to arrive should be the first to receive service [http://static.sdu.dk/mediafiles//1/9/5/%7B195881C4-8779-48E9-8C38-D935159DE32F%7Ddpbe10_2012.pdf].
What.
Their logic is this: incentivizing people to arrive early ends up causing the longest average wait times. Under their alternative model, people change their behavior, arriving at the queue at a slower rate. This alleviates the dreaded "bottleneck scenario," and thus congestion and long waits.
In an experiment involving over a hundred volunteers [http://static.sdu.dk/mediafiles//4/3/F/%7B43F80C9B-3533-4838-9E08-DE09931B9379%7Ddpbe12_2014.pdf], this seemingly crazy notion actually held water. A close second to the "last come" model is the "random order" model, a bit like how airplane boarding works, or drivers leaving a parking lot all at once after a big event. Despite the efficiency, most volunteers agreed it all felt a little unfair.
Even one of the main researchers isn't entirely convinced [http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03115gg], according to his interview with the BBC.
Now, I'm all for science trumping common sense - but this is a step too far. Who thinks this could ever be implemented? Besides, line-ups are the best time to play my 3DS. When am I going to finish Fire Emblem [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/reviews/10165-Fire-Emblem-Awakening-Review], if not when I'm stuck at the passport office for eight hours?
Source: QZ.com [http://qz.com/496525/danish-researchers-have-an-enraging-proposal-to-speed-up-queues-serve-the-last-person-first/]
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