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Optimal Binary Search Tree

Optimal binary search tree

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Atika Hussain
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15 views

Optimal Binary Search Tree

Optimal binary search tree

Uploaded by

Atika Hussain
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF or read online on Scribd
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8.3 Introduction tothe Design & Analysis of Algorithms straws [1994 East-Central Regionals of the indirectly via other connected ing Contest) ‘ACM International Collegiate Progra! Optimal Binary Search Trees A binary search tree is one of the most important data structures in computer science. One of its principal applications is to implement a dictionary, a set of tlements with the operations of searching, insertion, and deletion. If probabilities of searching for elements of a set are known (e.g., from accumulated data about past searches), it is natural to pose a question about an optimal binary search tree for which the average number of comparisons in a search is the smallest possible. (Forsimplicity, we limit our discussion to minimizing the average number of comparisons in a successful search. The method can be extended to include unsuccessful searches as well.) ‘As an example, consider four keys A, B, C, and D to be searched for with probabilities 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, and 0.3, respectively. Figure 8.8 depicts two out of 1 possible binary search trees containing these keys. The average number of com- parisons in a successful search in the first of these trees is 0.1-1 + 0.2.2 +043 + 03-4 = 2.9, while for the second one it is 0.1-2 + 0.2-1 + 0.4.2 + 0.33 =21 Neither of these two trees is, in fact, optimal. (Can you tell which binary trees optimal?) € __ For our tiny example, we could find the optimal tree by generating all binary search trees with these keys. Asa general algorithm, this exhaustive-search approach is unrealistic: the total number of binary search trees with keysis equal tothe nth Catalan number y Qn\ 1 e(n) = (“”)—_ = (n) (ch forn>0, c(0)=1, which grows to infinity as fast as 4"/n'> (see Probl i is s fa lem 7 in the exercises). Jet poe it disse be distinct keys ordered from the smallest to the largest a let pi,... Pn be the probabilities of searching for them. Let C[i, j] be the smallest ae ‘number of comparisons made in a successful search in a binary search! 7 made up of keys aj,...,q;, where i,j z ane j pe level of asin 71,4 + > ps} te ea i i ay é eta 14 SD py level of a in Ths +h pl 16H te = min (Cli, k — 1] + Clk + 1,71) + Dos aig) 7 rithms Introduction to the Design & Analysis of 19! Thus, we have the recurrence min {Clik 1+ Clk + 170+ 2 Ps forlsi

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