a quick google search of the term would have given you the answer. The algorithm is distributed among more than one microprocessor. Or each processor deals with a separate part of the problem. The same way problems are broken down to be solved by individual teams in large projects. For science etc, the splitting of the atom. that sort of problem. From a search: Distributed algorithm. ... Distributed algorithms are a sub-type of parallel algorithm, typically executed concurrently, with separate parts of the algorithm being run simultaneously on independent processors, and having limited information about what the other parts of the algorithm are doing.