Analysis and Design of Algorithms

Dr. Vandna Batra

Unit-1
Introduction to Algorithms

School of Engineering & Technology

K.R. Mangalam University, Gurugram (Haryana)
 Session 1
Algorithm characteristics and analysis
Algorithm?

Dr. Vandna Batra

Algorithm?
• An algorithm is a finite sequence of well-defined instructions
that can be used to solve a computational problem. It provides
a step-by-step procedure that convert an input into a desired
output.
• Algorithms typically follow a logical structure:
• Input: The algorithm receives input data.

• Processing: The algorithm performs a series of operations on the input

data.

• Output: The algorithm produces the desired output.

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 Properties of Algorithm
• Finiteness: An algorithm must always terminate after a finite number of
steps.
• Definiteness: Each step of an algorithm must be precisely defined; the
actions to be carried out must be rigorously and unambiguously specified
for each case.
• Input: An algorithm has zero or more inputs, i.e, quantities which are given
to it initially before the algorithm begins.
• Output. An algorithm has one or more outputs i.e, quantities which have a
specified relation to the inputs.
• Effectiveness. An algorithm is also generally expected to be effective. This
means that all of the operations to be performed in the algorithm must be
sufficiently basic that they can in principle be done exactly and in a finite
length of time. Dr. Vandna Batra
 Characteristics of an Algorithm
• Unambiguous − Algorithm should be clear and unambiguous. Each of its
steps (or phases), and their inputs/outputs should be clear and must lead
to only one meaning.
• Input − An algorithm should have 0 or more well-defined inputs.
• Output − An algorithm should have 1 or more well-defined outputs, and
should match the desired output.
• Finiteness − Algorithms must terminate after a finite number of steps.
• Feasibility − Should be feasible with the available resources.
• Independent − An algorithm should have step-by-step directions, which
should be independent of any programming code.

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Analysis of an Algorithm
• Algorithm analysis is an important part of
computational complexity theory.
• It provides theoretical estimation for the required
resources of an algorithm to solve a specific
computational problem.
• Analysis of algorithms is the determination of the
amount of time and space resources required to
execute it.

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Importance for Analysis of an Algorithm
• To predict the behavior of an algorithm for large inputs.

• It is much more convenient to have simple measures for the efficiency

of an algorithm than to implement the algorithm and test the
efficiency every time a certain parameter in the underlying computer
system changes.

• More importantly, by analyzing different algorithms, we can compare

them to determine the best one for our purpose.

Dr. Vandna Batra

Types of Complexity/Analysis of Algorithms
1. Time Complexity
Running time of the program as a function of the size of input
2. Space Complexity
Amount of computer memory required during the program execution,
as a function of the input size.

Dr. Vandna Batra

Time Complexity
• Time T(P) taken by a program is the sum of the Compile Time and
Run(or Execution) time.
• Program once compiled can be run several times.
• Compile time doesn’t depend on instance characteristics.
• Time complexity measures the amount of time an algorithm takes to
complete as a function of the input size n.
• It reflects the growth rate of the number of operations as input size
increases.

Dr. Vandna Batra

Time Complexity
• Example 1: Addition of two scalar variables.
Algorithm ADD SCALAR(A, B)
//Description: Perform arithmetic addition of two numbers
Input: Two scalar variables A and B
//Output: variable C, which holds the addition of A and B
C <- A + B
return C

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Time Complexity
• The addition of two scalar numbers requires one addition
operation.
• The time complexity of this algorithm is constant, so
• T(n) = O(1) .

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Types of Time Complexity

1.Best Case: The minimum time required for an algorithm to complete

(optimistic scenario).
2.Worst Case: The maximum time required (pessimistic scenario).
3.Average Case: The expected time for a random input of size n.

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Space Complexity
• To estimate the memory requirement we need to focus on two
parts:
• (1) A fixed part: It is independent of the input size. It includes
memory for instructions (code), constants, variables, etc.
• (2) A variable part: It is dependent on the input size. It includes
memory for recursion stack, referenced variables, etc.

Dr. Vandna Batra

Space Complexity
• Example 1: Addition of two scalar variables.
Algorithm ADD SCALAR(A, B)
//Description: Perform arithmetic addition of two numbers
Input: Two scalar variables A and B
//Output: variable C, which holds the addition of A and B
C <- A + B
return C

Dr. Vandna Batra

Space Complexity
• The addition of two scalar numbers requires one extra memory
location to hold the result.
• Thus the space complexity of this algorithm is constant, hence
• S(n) = O(1).

Dr. Vandna Batra

Space Complexity
• The addition of two scalar numbers requires one extra memory
location to hold the result.
• Thus the space complexity of this algorithm is constant, hence
• S(n) = O(1).

Dr. Vandna Batra

Test Your Knowledge
• Which of the following best defines an algorithm?
• (A) A set of rules for solving a problem in a finite amount of time.
• (B) A computer program written in a high-level language.
• (C) A flowchart describing a problem.
• (D) A mathematical formula.

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Test Your Knowledge
2. What is the purpose of algorithm analysis?
(A) To verify the correctness of the algorithm.
(B) To optimize the algorithm's performance in terms of time and space.
(C) To convert the algorithm into code.
(D) To document the algorithm in detail.

3. What is the main focus of time complexity analysis?

(A) The amount of memory used by the algorithm.
(B) The growth of execution time with input size.
(C) The correctness of the algorithm.
(D) The structure of the algorithm.

Dr. Vandna Batra

Test Your Knowledge
4. What does space complexity NOT include?
(A) Memory required for input data.
(B) Memory for auxiliary variables.
(C) CPU usage during execution.
(D) Memory for recursive stack calls.

5. The growth rate of an algorithm's execution time with respect to

input size is called its ___ complexity.

Dr. Vandna Batra

Test Your Knowledge
6. What is time complexity of fun()?
int fun(int n)
{
int count = 0;
for (int i = n; i > 0; i /= 2)
for (int j = 0; j < i; j++)
count += 1;
return count;
}
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 Test Your Knowledge
7. In a competition, four different functions are observed. All the
functions use a single for loop and within the for loop, same set of
statements are executed. Consider the following for loops:
A) for(i = 0; i < n; i++)
B) for(i = 0; i < n; i += 2)
C) for(i = 1; i < n; i *= 2)
D) for(i = n; i <= n; i /= 2)
If n is the size of input(positive), which function is most efficient(if the
task to be performed is not an issue)?
A, B, C or D
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 Recap
In this lecture we have discussed:
• Algorithm definition
• Properties of an algorithm
• Characteristics of an algorithm
• Analysis of algorithm
• Time and Space complexity

Dr. Vandna Batra