Scribd
Upload
29 views

Data Structure Sorting Algo

Uploaded by

humashafique24
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
29 views

Data Structure Sorting Algo

Uploaded by

humashafique24
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

Data Structures - Sorting Techniques

Sorting refers to arranging data in a particular format. Sorting algorithm specifies the way to
arrange data in a particular order. Most common orders are in numerical or lexicographical order.
The importance of sorting lies in the fact that data searching can be optimized to a very high level,
if data is stored in a sorted manner. Sorting is also used to represent data in more readable formats.
Following are some of the examples of sorting in real-life scenarios:
➢ Telephone Directory − The telephone directory stores the telephone numbers of people
sorted by their names, so that the names can be searched easily.
➢ Dictionary − The dictionary stores words in an alphabetical order so that searching of any
word becomes easy.
In-place Sorting and Not-in-place Sorting
Sorting algorithms may require some extra space for comparison and temporary storage of few
data elements. These algorithms do not require any extra space and sorting is said to happen in-
place, or for example, within the array itself. This is called in-place sorting. Bubble sort is an
example of in-place sorting.
However, in some sorting algorithms, the program requires space which is more than or equal to
the elements being sorted. Sorting which uses equal or more space is called not-in-place sorting.
Merge-sort is an example of not-in-place sorting.
Stable and Not Stable Sorting
If a sorting algorithm, after sorting the contents, does not change the sequence of similar content
in which they appear, it is called stable sorting.

If a sorting algorithm, after sorting the contents, changes the sequence of similar content in which
they appear, it is called unstable sorting.
Stability of an algorithm matters when we wish to maintain the sequence of original elements, like
in a tuple for example.
Some terms are generally coined while discussing sorting techniques, here is a brief introduction
to them:
Increasing Order
A sequence of values is said to be in increasing order, if the successive element is greater than
the previous one. For example, 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9 are in increasing order, as every next element is
greater than the previous element.
Decreasing Order
A sequence of values is said to be in decreasing order, if the successive element is less than the
current one. For example, 9, 8, 6, 4, 3, 1 are in decreasing order, as every next element is less than
the previous element.
Non-Increasing Order
A sequence of values is said to be in non-increasing order, if the successive element is less than
or equal to its previous element in the sequence. This order occurs when the sequence contains
duplicate values. For example, 9, 8, 6, 3, 3, 1 are in non-increasing order, as every next element is
less than or equal to (in case of 3) but not greater than any previous element.
Non-Decreasing Order
A sequence of values is said to be in non-decreasing order, if the successive element is greater
than or equal to its previous element in the sequence. This order occurs when the sequence contains
duplicate values. For example, 1, 3, 3, 6, 8, 9 are in non-decreasing order, as every next element
is greater than or equal to (in case of 3) but not less than the previous one.
There are several sorting techniques available to sort the contents of various data structures.
Following are some of those:
➢ Bubble Sort
➢ Insertion Sort
➢ Selection Sort
➢ Merge Sort
➢ Shell Sort
➢ Heap Sort
➢ Bucket Sort Algorithm
➢ Counting Sort Algorithm
➢ Radix Sort Algorithm
➢ Quick Sort

You might also like