Addition still takes time though doesn't it? The idea is I could start an addition operation, and then be notified in some way when it's done.
I think the idea most similar to what the grandparent wants is instruction-level dataflow, where programs are DAGs, and instructions are only run when their inputs are ready, rather than when a program counter reaches them.
Physical dataflow machines were built that did this in hardware.
Right, but only on a single core and only over a small sliding window. Real data flow machines made it explicit rather than a fragile optimisation and scaled it up.
Just fyi, a library openstack (and myself and others) has created (in python) basically lets u program your workflow (really dataflow) as a DAG, and then the library will run it reliably (and in parallel and so-on). I'm more than willing to answer questions about how it does that if people are interested...
I think the idea most similar to what the grandparent wants is instruction-level dataflow, where programs are DAGs, and instructions are only run when their inputs are ready, rather than when a program counter reaches them.
Physical dataflow machines were built that did this in hardware.