Christmas is coming soon, which puts everyone into high gear. Santa and his elves are preparing everything for their big gift-giving night. They tinker, refine and plan so that everything can run smoothly. They remember last year and how chaotic it got at the end of the night when Santa was completely exhausted and tired.
This year will be different! He knows that he only has 10 hours on Christmas Eve and that he can’t fly unlimeted fast .On top of that, he gets tired during the night and the weather can change. Nevertheless, he wants to make sure that he can deliver all the presents.
To find out if everything is working well, he assumes that his sleigh and himself (only on this night!) are a machine. After thinking about it for a while, considers various options and asks his elves what the best solution is:
a. 🎅⏱️🎄 Santa sets his flying speed exactly as he did last year. That’s what he’s used to and it works out roughly, so he finishes on time, but luckily it’s only once a year.
b. 🚀⚡😵💫 Santa flies at top speed all night long from the start – regardless of fatigue, weather, or the sleigh. The main thing is to be fast, and maybe he’ll finish a little earlier.
c. 💻📊🧮 A computer constantly measures how many presents are actually delivered per hour and compares this with an optimal plan prepared by the elves based on last year’s data. This allows the flight speed and breaks to be calculated and adjusted.
d. 🤷♂️🎁❄️ Santa no longer wants to worry about whether all children will receive presents. So it doesn’t matter anymore.
Which option should Santa choose?
Related control theory topic: principle of feedback control