I wonder how the Demon Horde Sort would work if the bounds were not in a nice grid like that? Is it possible to put inputs on the right and outputs on the left? What happens if the grid changes size?
I think the idea is that the bounds are finite but not fixed. The architect of the system could hot-plug in a bunch of nodes to any direction and the playing field would instantly expand. However, at any given time, there are a knowable, fixed number of nodes.
the 'grid' changing bounds is the intended mode of existence
in regard to demon horde the paper(o) states 'channel size increases performance'
but this should be uncontroversial
more resources give better results
it will be an optimisation problem to determine necessary resource alocation for desired results
the shape of the simulation was stated(i) to be a simplified representation of the functionality
the paper discusses 'a movable membrane whose contents cannot diffuse out', the figure is an almost organic shape, much more adaptable than the rectangular simulation demonstration
There's also a more recent 'router' demo(1) that -- though still rigid and rectangular -- does build its own boundary rather than relying on the grid boundary.