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Introduction To Brute Force

Brute-force algorithms exhaustively evaluate all possible solutions to a problem and check if each one satisfies the problem's constraints. While straightforward, brute-force algorithms are generally inefficient with runtimes that are exponential in the input size (e.g. O(2^n) or O(n!)). However, they can still be practical for small problem instances. The document describes several examples of brute-force algorithms, including calculating powers, selection sort, the 0/1 knapsack problem, and the assignment problem.

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134 views13 pages

Introduction To Brute Force

Brute-force algorithms exhaustively evaluate all possible solutions to a problem and check if each one satisfies the problem's constraints. While straightforward, brute-force algorithms are generally inefficient with runtimes that are exponential in the input size (e.g. O(2^n) or O(n!)). However, they can still be practical for small problem instances. The document describes several examples of brute-force algorithms, including calculating powers, selection sort, the 0/1 knapsack problem, and the assignment problem.

Uploaded by

prithiks
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Introduction to Algorithms:

Brute-Force Algorithms
Introduction to Algorithms

Brute Force
• Powering a Number
• Selection Sort
• Exhaustive Search
• 0/1 Knapsack Problem
• Assignment Problem

2
Brute-Force Algorithm Design
• Straightforward, usually based on problem
definition.
• Rarely the most efficient but can be applied
to wide range of problems.
• For some elementary problems, almost as
good as most efficient. May not be worth cost.
• May work just as well on smaller data sets.
• Used to measure other algorithms against.

3
Calculating Powers of a Number
Problem: Compute a n, where n  N.
Naive algorithm: (n).
an= n * n * n * …* n
a times

CS 421 - Analysis of Algorithms 4


Selection Sort
Given a list of n orderable items, rearrange them in non-
decreasing order.
1. Scan entire list to find smallest item.
2. Exchange it with first item. First element now in its
final, sorted position.
3. Scan remaining n – 1 items, starting with second
element, and find smallest item.
4. Exchange it with second item. Second element now in
its final, sorted position.
5. Repeat for a total of n – 1 times.

5
Selection Sort -
Example
Selection sort on the list: 89, 45, 68, 90, 29, 34, 17.
Each line corresponds to an iteration of the algorithm.
The values in bold are the smallest item for that iterations.
Elements to the left of the vertical bar are in their final
positions.
| 89 45 68 90 29 34 17
17 |45 68 90 29 34 89
17 29 | 68 90 45 34 89
17 29 34 | 90 45 68 89
17 29 34 45 | 90 68 89
17 29 34 45 68 | 90 89
17 29 34 45 68 89 | 90
CS 421 - Analysis of Algorithms 6
Selection Sort -
Analysis
Selection sort is implemented using nested for
loops:
Outer loop: iterates from 0 to n – 2 – don’t
have to visit element because already in final
sorted position
Inner loop: finds smallest value remaining the
list. Even though gets smaller each iteration, still
on order of n.
Therefore:
T(n) = (n2)
CS 421 - Analysis of Algorithms 7
Exhaustive Search
Brute-force approach to combinatorial problems
(i.e. permutations, combinations, subsets of a
given set).
1. Generate all elements of problem domain (all
possible solutions).
2. Select those that satisfy the constraints of the
problem.
3. Chose one or more that are most desirable (i.e.
optimize the objective function).

8
0/1 Knapsack Problem
Given n items of known weights w1, w2, …, wn and
values v1, v2, …, vn , and a knapsack of capacity W,
find most valuable subset of items that will fit.

1. Generate all subsets of n items.


2. Calculate the weights of each and eliminate all
the infeasible solutions.
3. Find the subset with the maximum value.

9
0/1 Knapsack Problem
Analysis
The most costly operation is generating all of the
subsets of n items. Since there are 2n subsets,

Brute-force Approach to Knapsack problem: Ω(2n).

Not feasible for any but the smallest values of n.

10
Assignment Problem
There are n jobs that need to be completed, and n
people that need to be assigned to a job, one
person per job. The cost for the i th person to
perform job j is known C[i, j]. Find the assignment
with the lowest cost.

1. Generate all permutations of n people assigned


to n jobs.
2. Calculate the cost of each permutation/solution.
3. Find the solution with the minimum value.
CS 421 - Analysis of Algorithms 11
Assignment Problem
Analysis
The most costly operation is generating all of the
permutations. Since there are n! permutations,

Brute-force Approach to Assignment problem: Θ(n!).

Not feasible for any but the smallest values of n.

12
Conclusion
The Brute Force approach:
• Straightforward approach to solving
problem, usually based directly on
problem description.
• Wide applicability and simple.
• But in general, has subpar performance.

13

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