Final answer:
In computing, the three critical control problems for competing processes are mutual exclusion, deadlock, and starvation, which must be carefully managed to ensure stability and fairness in system resource allocation.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the context of processes competing for resources in computing, three fundamental control problems need to be addressed: mutual exclusion, deadlock, and starvation. Mutual exclusion ensures that only one process can access a critical section or resource at a time. Deadlocks occur when two or more processes are waiting indefinitely for resources held by each other. Starvation happens when a process waits indefinitely to access a resource as other processes repeatedly access it instead. These problems are critical in the domain of operating systems and concurrent programming, requiring mechanisms to prevent, avoid, or detect such issues to ensure system stability and fairness.