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L3 - Fundamentals of Algo Problem Solving

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L3 - Fundamentals of Algo Problem Solving

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raviashray15
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Design

&
Analysis
of
Algorithms

Lecture 3
Fundamentals of
Algorithmic
Problem Solving
Fundamentals of Algorithmic
Problem Solving
Understanding the Problem

 Problem Description
 few small examples by hand
 think about special cases
 ask questions again if needed

 Inputs
 Your algorithm may work correctly for a majority of
inputs but crash on some “boundary” value.
 Remember that a correct algorithm is not one that
works most of the time, but one that works correctly for
all legitimate inputs.
Ascertaining the Capabilities of the
Computational Device

 The vast majority of algorithms in use today are


still destined to be programmed for a computer
closely resembling the Von Neumann machine
 Random-Access Machine (RAM)

 Instructions are executed one after another, one


operation at a time.

 Accordingly, algorithms designed to be executed on such


machines are called Sequential Algorithms.
Ascertaining the Capabilities of the
Computational Device

 The central assumption of the RAM model does not


hold for some newer computers that can execute
operations concurrently, i.e., in parallel.

 Algorithms that take advantage of this capability


are called Parallel Algorithms.
Ascertaining the Capabilities of the
Computational Device

 Should you worry about the speed and


amount of memory of a computer at your
disposal?

 NO

 Algorithms should be System Independent


Choosing between Exact and
Approximate Problem Solving

 Exact Algorithms
 Approximate Algorithms

WHY Approximate Algorithms?


 there are important problems that simply cannot be solved
exactly for most of their instances;
 Extracting square roots, solving nonlinear equations, and
evaluating definite integrals.
 Available algorithms for solving a problem exactly can be
unacceptably slow because of the problem’s intrinsic
complexity.
Algorithm Design Techniques

 An algorithm design technique (or “strategy” or


“paradigm”) is a general approach to solving
problems algorithmically that is applicable to a
variety of problems from different areas of
computing.

 Algorithm design techniques make it possible to


classify algorithms according to an underlying
design idea
Designing an Algorithm and Data
Structures

 Choosing data structures appropriate for the


operations performed by the algorithm

Example:
 The sieve of Eratosthenes would run longer if
we used a linked list instead of an array in its
implementation (Why?).
 Google the Answer
Methods of Specifying an Algorithm

 Two options that are most widely used nowadays


for specifying algorithms.
1. Free and also a step-by-step form (flowchart)
2. Pseudocode: is a mixture of a natural language and
programming language like constructs
Proving an Algorithm’s Correctness

 You have to prove that the algorithm yields a required


result for every legitimate input in a finite amount of time.

 For example: the correctness of Euclid’s algorithm


 for computing the greatest common divisor stems from
the correctness of the equality gcd(m, n) = gcd(n, m
mod n) the simple observation that the second integer
gets smaller on every iteration of the algorithm, and the
fact that the algorithm stops when the second integer
becomes 0.
Analyzing an Algorithm

 After correctness, by far the most important is efficiency.

 Two kinds of algorithm efficiency:


1. time efficiency— indicating how fast the algorithm runs
2. space efficiency— indicating how much extra memory it
uses.

 Other desirable characteristic of an algorithm are


simplicity, generality.
Coding an Algorithm

 Most algorithms are destined to be ultimately implemented


as computer programs.

 Of course, implementing an algorithm correctly is


necessary but not sufficient:
 you would not like to diminish your algorithm’s power by an
inefficient implementation.
(Modern compilers do provide a certain safety net in this
regard, especially when they are used in their code
optimization mode.)
Algorithms and other technologies

 Algorithms, like computer hardware, are a technology.


 Total system performance depends on choosing efficient
algorithms as much as on choosing fast hardware.
 Whether algorithms are truly that important on
contemporary computers in light of other advanced
(following) technologies?
 hardware with high clock rates, pipelining, and superscalar
architectures
 easy-to-use and intuitive GUIs
 object-oriented systems
 local-area and wide-area networking
 YES
References
 Chapter 1: Anany Levitin, “Introduction to the
Design and Analysis of Algorithms”, Pearson
Education, Third Edition, 2017

 Chapter 2: Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E.


Leiserson, Ronald L. Rivest and Clifford Stein,
“Introduction to Algorithms”, MIT Press/PHI
Learning Private Limited, Third Edition, 2012.
Homework
 Design an algorithm for computing ⌊√n⌋ for any
positive integer n. Besides assignment and
comparison, your algorithm may only use the four
basic arithmetical operations.

 Consider the problem of adding two n-bit binary


integers, stored in two n-element arrays A and B. The
sum of the two integers should be stored in binary
form in an (n + 1)-element array C. State the problem
formally and write pseudocode for adding the two
integers.

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