🧮 Random Serial Dictatorship (RSD) Algorithm

Welcome! This repository implements the Random Serial Dictatorship (RSD) algorithm for resource allocation problems.

Applications

The Random Serial Dictatorship (RSD) algorithm has various scientific and practical applications, including:

• Assigning dormitories: Used for assigning dormitories to students in universities.
• School choice systems: Applied in school choice systems to allocate students to schools.
• Economics: Utilized in economic models for allocating limited resources fairly.

This algorithm’s simplicity and fairness make it a valuable tool in resource allocation problems.

📌 About the Project

This project contains two versions of the RSD algorithm:

• Python version
• PHP version

You can specify the input data at the top of each code file using the agents variable. This variable maps each agent (by index) to their ranked preferences of goods or services.

✅ Input Format

• The number of agents must be greater than 1.

• Each agent’s preferences must:

  • Include non-duplicate items
  • Be equal in length to the number of agents

Example input definition (as comments at the top of the file):

# agents = {
#   0: [2, 1, 0],
#   1: [0, 2, 1],
#   2: [1, 0, 2]
# }

📤 Output Format

The output of the algorithm is:

• In Python: a dictionary → agent_index => allocation_probability
• In PHP: an associative array → agent_index => allocation_probability

💡 IDE Recommendation

We recommend using Visual Studio Code with the Code Runner extension:

• Easy variable editing
• Quick output view

🎨 Visualization of RSD

Below is a illustration about the RSD algorithm working. Four agents select their preferred houses in a randomly assigned order, with arrows indicating allocations, showing each agent’s choice from the available options in a non-reversible process.:

🧪 Input & Output Sample

Python Version:

PHP Version:

👨‍💻 Credits

This project was created and developed by Mohammad Amin Mashayekhan. Guidance and assistance resources:

• Assistant Professor Mehdi Feizi
• Stack Overflow
• php2python.com
• And other online resources

📬 Contact

If you have any questions, feedback, or would like to discuss this project further, feel free to get in touch:

• 📧 Email: amin.mashayekhan@gmail.com
• 📅 Schedule a quick tech call: Book a 15-minute meeting

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