Chapter 1
Introduction
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What is an algorithm?
An algorithm is a sequence of unambiguous instructions
for solving a problem, i.e., for obtaining a required
output for any legitimate input in a finite amount of
time.
problem
algorithm
input “computer” output
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-1
Algorithm
! An algorithm is a sequence of unambiguous
instructions for solving a problem, i.e., for
obtaining a required output for any legitimate
input in a finite amount of time.
• Can be represented various forms
• Unambiguity/clearness
• Effectiveness
• Finiteness/termination
• Correctness
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Historical Perspective
! Euclid’s algorithm for finding the greatest common divisor
! Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi – 9th century
mathematician
[Link]/science/parshall/[Link]
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Notion of algorithm and problem
problem
algorithm
input “computer” output
(or instance)
algorithmic solution
(different from a conventional solution)
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Example of computational problem: sorting
! Statement of problem:
• Input: A sequence of n numbers <a1, a2, …, an>
• Output: A reordering of the input sequence <a´1, a´2, …, a´n> so that
a´i ≤ a´j whenever i < j
! Instance: The sequence <5, 3, 2, 8, 3>
! Algorithms:
• Selection sort
• Insertion sort
• Merge sort
• (many others)
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Selection Sort
! Input: array a[1],…,a[n]
! Output: array a sorted in non-decreasing order
! Algorithm:
for i=1 to n
swap a[i] with smallest of a[i],…,a[n]
• Is this unambiguous? Effective?
• See also pseudocode, section 3.1
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Some Well-known Computational Problems
! Sorting
! Searching
! Shortest paths in a graph
! Minimum spanning tree
! Primality testing
! Traveling salesman problem
! Knapsack problem
! Chess
! Towers of Hanoi
! Program termination
Some of these problems don’t have efficient algorithms,
or algorithms at all!
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Basic Issues Related to Algorithms
! How to design algorithms
! How to express algorithms
! Proving correctness
! Efficiency (or complexity) analysis
• Theoretical analysis
• Empirical analysis
! Optimality
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Algorithm design strategies
! Brute force ! Greedy approach
! Divide and conquer ! Dynamic programming
! Decrease and conquer
! Backtracking and branch-and-bound
! Transform and conquer
! Space and time tradeoffs
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Analysis of Algorithms
! How good is the algorithm?
• Correctness
• Time efficiency
• Space efficiency
! Does there exist a better algorithm?
• Lower bounds
• Optimality
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What is an algorithm?
! Recipe, process, method, technique, procedure, routine,…
with the following requirements:
1. Finiteness
! terminates after a finite number of steps
2. Definiteness
! rigorously and unambiguously specified
3. Clearly specified input
! valid inputs are clearly specified
4. Clearly specified/expected output
! can be proved to produce the correct output given a valid input
5. Effectiveness
! steps are sufficiently simple and basic
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Why study algorithms?
! Theoretical importance
• the core of computer science
! Practical importance
• A practitioner’s toolkit of known algorithms
• Framework for designing and analyzing algorithms for new
problems
Example: Google’s PageRank Technology
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Euclid’s Algorithm
Problem: Find gcd(m,n), the greatest common divisor of two
nonnegative, not both zero integers m and n
Examples: gcd(60,24) = 12, gcd(60,0) = 60, gcd(0,0) = ?
Euclid’s algorithm is based on repeated application of equality
gcd(m,n) = gcd(n, m mod n)
until the second number becomes 0, which makes the problem
trivial.
Example: gcd(60,24) = gcd(24,12) = gcd(12,0) = 12
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Two descriptions of Euclid’s algorithm
Step 1 If n = 0, return m and stop; otherwise go to Step 2
Step 2 Divide m by n and assign the value of the remainder to r
Step 3 Assign the value of n to m and the value of r to n. Go to
Step 1.
while n ≠ 0 do
r ← m mod n
m← n
n←r
return m
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Other methods for computing gcd(m,n)
Consecutive integer checking algorithm
Step 1 Assign the value of min{m,n} to t
Step 2 Divide m by t. If the remainder is 0, go to Step 3;
otherwise, go to Step 4
Step 3 Divide n by t. If the remainder is 0, return t and stop;
otherwise, go to Step 4
Step 4 Decrease t by 1 and go to Step 2
Is this slower than Euclid’s algorithm?
How much slower?
O(n), if n <= m , vs O(log n)
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Other methods for gcd(m,n) [cont.]
Middle-school procedure
Step 1 Find the prime factorization of m
Step 2 Find the prime factorization of n
Step 3 Find all the common prime factors
Step 4 Compute the product of all the common prime factors
and return it as gcd(m,n)
Is this an algorithm?
How efficient is it?
Time complexity: O(sqrt(n))
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Sieve of Eratosthenes
Input: Integer n ≥ 2
Output: List of primes less than or equal to n
for p ← 2 to n do A[p] ← p
for p ← 2 to n do
if A[p] ¹ 0 //p hasn’t been previously eliminated from the list
j ← p* p
while j ≤ n do
A[j] ← 0 //mark element as eliminated
j←j+p
Example: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Time complexity: O(n)
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Two main issues related to algorithms
! How to design algorithms
! How to analyze algorithm efficiency
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Algorithm design techniques/strategies
! Brute force ! Greedy approach
! Divide and conquer ! Dynamic programming
! Decrease and conquer ! Iterative improvement
! Transform and conquer ! Backtracking
! Space and time tradeoffs ! Branch and bound
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-19
Analysis of algorithms
! How good is the algorithm?
• time efficiency
• space efficiency
• correctness ignored in this course
! Does there exist a better algorithm?
• lower bounds
• optimality
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-20
Important problem types
! sorting
! searching
! string processing
! graph problems
! combinatorial problems
! geometric problems
! numerical problems
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-21
Sorting (I)
! Rearrange the items of a given list in ascending order.
• Input: A sequence of n numbers <a1, a2, …, an>
• Output: A reordering <a´1, a´2, …, a´n> of the input sequence such that
a´1≤ a´2 ≤ … ≤ a´n.
! Why sorting?
• Help searching
• Algorithms often use sorting as a key subroutine.
! Sorting key
• A specially chosen piece of information used to guide sorting. E.g., sort
student records by names.
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-22
Sorting (II)
! Examples of sorting algorithms
• Selection sort
• Bubble sort
• Insertion sort
• Merge sort
• Heap sort …
! Evaluate sorting algorithm complexity: the number of key comparisons.
! Two properties
• Stability: A sorting algorithm is called stable if it preserves the relative order
of any two equal elements in its input.
• In place : A sorting algorithm is in place if it does not require extra memory,
except, possibly for a few memory units.
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-23
Selection Sort
Algorithm SelectionSort(A[0..n-1])
//The algorithm sorts a given array by selection sort
//Input: An array A[0..n-1] of orderable elements
//Output: Array A[0..n-1] sorted in ascending order
for i ß 0 to n – 2 do
min ß i
for j ß i + 1 to n – 1 do
if A[j] < A[min]
min ß j
swap A[i] and A[min]
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-24
Searching
! Find a given value, called a search key, in a given set.
! Examples of searching algorithms
• Sequential search
• Binary search …
Input: sorted array a_i < … < a_j and key x;
m ß(i+j)/2;
while i < j and x != a_m do
if x < a_m then j ß m-1
else i ß m+1;
if x = a_m then output a_m;
Time: O(log n)
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-25
String Processing
! A string is a sequence of characters from an alphabet.
! Text strings: letters, numbers, and special characters.
! String matching: searching for a given word/pattern in a
text.
Examples:
(i) searching for a word or phrase on WWW or in a
Word document
(ii) searching for a short read in the reference genomic
sequence
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-26
Graph Problems
! Informal definition
• A graph is a collection of points called vertices, some of
which are connected by line segments called edges.
! Modeling real-life problems
• Modeling WWW
• Communication networks
• Project scheduling …
! Examples of graph algorithms
• Graph traversal algorithms
• Shortest-path algorithms
• Topological sorting
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Fundamental data structures
! list ! graph
• array ! tree and binary tree
• linked list ! set and dictionary
• string
! stack
! queue
! priority queue/heap
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Linear Data Structures
! Arrays n Arrays
• A sequence of n items of the same n fixed length (need preliminary
data type that are stored reservation of memory)
contiguously in computer memory n contiguous memory locations
and made accessible by specifying a
value of the array’s index. n direct access
! Linked List n Insert/delete
• A sequence of zero or more nodes n Linked Lists
each containing two kinds of
information: some data and one or n dynamic length
more links called pointers to other n arbitrary memory locations
nodes of the linked list.
n access by following links
• Singly linked list (next pointer)
n Insert/delete
• Doubly linked list (next + previous
pointers)
a1 a2 … an .
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Stacks and Queues
! Stacks
• A stack of plates
– insertion/deletion can be done only at the top.
– LIFO
• Two operations (push and pop)
! Queues
• A queue of customers waiting for services
– Insertion/enqueue from the rear and deletion/dequeue from the
front.
– FIFO
• Two operations (enqueue and dequeue)
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-30
Priority Queue and Heap
n Priority queues (implemented using heaps)
n A data structure for maintaining a set of elements,
each associated with a key/priority, with the
following operations
n Finding the element with the highest priority
n Deleting the element with the highest priority
n Inserting a new element 9
n Scheduling jobs on a shared computer 6 8
5 2 3
9 6 8 5 2 3
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Graphs
! Formal definition
• A graph G = <V, E> is defined by a pair of two sets: a
finite set V of items called vertices and a set E of vertex
pairs called edges.
! Undirected and directed graphs (digraphs).
! What’s the maximum number of edges in an undirected
graph with |V| vertices?
! Complete, dense, and sparse graphs
• A graph with every pair of its vertices connected by an
edge is called complete, K|V|
1 2
3 4
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Graph Representation
! Adjacency matrix
• n x n boolean matrix if |V| is n.
• The element on the ith row and jth column is 1 if there’s an
edge from ith vertex to the jth vertex; otherwise 0.
• The adjacency matrix of an undirected graph is symmetric.
! Adjacency linked lists
• A collection of linked lists, one for each vertex, that contain all
the vertices adjacent to the list’s vertex.
! Which data structure would you use if the graph is a 100-node star
shape?
0111 2 3 4
0001 4
0001 4
0000
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Weighted Graphs
! Weighted graphs
• Graphs or digraphs with numbers assigned to the edges.
5
1 2
6 7
9
3 4
8
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Graph Properties -- Paths and Connectivity
! Paths
• A path from vertex u to v of a graph G is defined as a sequence of
adjacent (connected by an edge) vertices that starts with u and ends
with v.
• Simple paths: All edges of a path are distinct.
• Path lengths: the number of edges, or the number of vertices – 1.
! Connected graphs
• A graph is said to be connected if for every pair of its vertices u and
v there is a path from u to v.
! Connected component
• The maximum connected subgraph of a given graph.
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-35
Graph Properties -- Acyclicity
! Cycle
• A simple path of a positive length that starts and
ends a the same vertex.
! Acyclic graph
• A graph without cycles
• DAG (Directed Acyclic Graph)
1 2
3 4
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Trees
! Trees
• A tree (or free tree) is a connected acyclic graph.
• Forest: a graph that has no cycles but is not necessarily connected.
! Properties of trees
• For every two vertices in a tree there always exists exactly one
simple path from one of these vertices to the other. Why?
– Rooted trees: The above property makes it possible to select an
arbitrary vertex in a free tree and consider it as the root of the
so called rooted tree.
– Levels in a rooted tree.
rooted
3
n |E| = |V| - 1 1 3 5
4 1 5
2 4
2
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Rooted Trees (I)
! Ancestors
• For any vertex v in a tree T, all the vertices on the simple
path from the root to that vertex are called ancestors.
! Descendants
• All the vertices for which a vertex v is an ancestor are said
to be descendants of v.
! Parent, child and siblings
• If (u, v) is the last edge of the simple path from the root to
vertex v, u is said to be the parent of v and v is called a child
of u.
• Vertices that have the same parent are called siblings.
! Leaves
• A vertex without children is called a leaf.
! Subtree
• A vertex v with all its descendants is called the subtree of T
rooted at v.
Copyright © 2007 Pearson Addison-Wesley. All rights reserved. A. Levitin “Introduction to the Design & Analysis of Algorithms,” 2nd ed., Ch. 1 1-38
Rooted Trees (II)
! Depth of a vertex
• The length of the simple path from the root to the vertex.
! Height of a tree
• The length of the longest simple path from the root to a leaf.
h=2
3
4 1 5
2
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Ordered Trees
! Ordered trees
• An ordered tree is a rooted tree in which all the children of each
vertex are ordered.
! Binary trees
• A binary tree is an ordered tree in which every vertex has no more
than two children and each children is designated s either a left child
or a right child of its parent.
! Binary search trees
• Each vertex is assigned a number.
• A number assigned to each parental vertex is larger than all the
numbers in its left subtree and smaller than all the numbers in its
right subtree.
! ëlog2nû £ h £ n – 1, where h is the height of a binary tree and n the size.
9 6
6 8 3 9
5 2 3 2 5 8
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