> For an operating system latency is more important than through put

One interesting exception to this rule is operating systems for network packet routers. These need to be optimized for throughput over latency. I mean, the difference between 10 and 20 million packets per second is important, but the difference between 10 and 20 microseconds of processing delay is not.

This is a fun area to be in at the moment because simple academic-looking code can actually compete with highly optimized kernels like Linux because those have been optimized for something else.