1 The Role of Algorithms in Computing
What are algorithms? Why is the study of algorithms worthwhile? What
is the role of algorithms relative to other technologies used in
computers? This chapter will answer these questions.
1.1 Algorithms
Informally, an algorithm is any well-defined computational procedure
that takes some value, or set of values, as input and produces some
value, or set of values, as output in a finite amount of time. An
algorithm is thus a sequence of computational steps that transform the
input into the output.
You can also view an algorithm as a tool for solving a well-specified
computational problem. The statement of the problem specifies in
general terms the desired input/output relationship for problem
instances, typically of arbitrarily large size. The algorithm describes a
specific computational procedure for achieving that input/output
relationship for all problem instances.
As an example, suppose that you need to sort a sequence of numbers
into monotonically increasing order. This problem arises frequently in
practice and provides fertile ground for introducing many standard
design techniques and analysis tools. Here is how we formally define the
sorting problem:
Input: A sequence of n numbers 〈a1, a2, … , an〉.
Output: A permutation (reordering) of the input sequence
such that .
Thus, given the input sequence 〈31, 41, 59, 26, 41, 58〉, a correct sorting
algorithm returns as output the sequence 〈26, 31, 41, 41, 58, 59〉. Such
an input sequence is called an instance of the sorting problem. In
general, an instance of a problem1 consists of the input (satisfying
whatever constraints are imposed in the problem statement) needed to
compute a solution to the problem.
Because many programs use it as an intermediate step, sorting is a
fundamental operation in computer science. As a result, you have a
large number of good sorting algorithms at your disposal. Which
algorithm is best for a given application depends on—among other
factors—the number of items to be sorted, the extent to which the
items are already somewhat sorted, possible restrictions on the item
values, the architecture of the computer, and the kind of storage
devices to be used: main memory, disks, or even—archaically—tapes.
An algorithm for a computational problem is correct if, for every
problem instance provided as input, it halts—finishes its computing in
finite time—and outputs the correct solution to the problem instance. A
correct algorithm solves the given computational problem. An incorrect
algorithm might not halt at all on some input instances, or it might halt
with an incorrect answer. Contrary to what you might expect, incorrect
algorithms can sometimes be useful, if you can control their error rate.
We’ll see an example of an algorithm with a controllable error rate in
Chapter 31 when we study algorithms for finding large prime numbers.
Ordinarily, however, we’ll concern ourselves only with correct
algorithms.
An algorithm can be specified in English, as a computer program, or
even as a hardware design. The only requirement is that the
specification must provide a precise description of the computational
procedure to be followed.
What kinds of problems are solved by algorithms?
