Scribd
Upload
6 views

lec07a_Recursion_part_1

Uploaded by

xuweizheng45
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
6 views

lec07a_Recursion_part_1

Uploaded by

xuweizheng45
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/ 32

Calling Other Functions

Compare:
def hypotenuse(a, b):
return sqrt(sum_of_squares(a, b))

def sum_of_squares(x, y):


return square(x) + square(y)

def square(x): ?
return x * x a

Versus: b
def hypotenuse(a, b):
return sqrt((a*a) + (b*b))
The Call Stack
Michael Caine Just Ended An Eight Year Long Debate Over The Ending Of "Inception"
Stack
• First in last out order
First in Last Out
The Stack (or the Call Stack)
The Stack (or the Call Stack)
>>> p1(3)
Entering function p1
Entering function p2
Entering function p3
Line before return in p3
Line before return in p2
Line before return in p1
9
FILO!
Going in
Exiting a function
p3()
p2()
p1()
Parameters are LOCAL variables
Scope of x in
p1

Scope of x in
p2

Does not refer to

Scope of x in
p3
Practices (Convention)
• Global variables are VERY bad practices,
especially if modification is allowed
• 99% of time, global variables are used as
CONSTANTS
– Variables that every function could access
– But not expected to be modified

Convention:
Usually in all CAPs
Calling Other Functions Yourself?
Recursion
A Central Idea of CS

Some examples of recursion (inside and outside CS):

Garfield dreaming
recursively.

Sierpinksi triangle

Droste effect
Recursive tree
Recursion
• A function that calls itself
• And extremely powerful
technique
• Solve a big problem by solving
a smaller version of itself
– Mini-me
Factorial
• The factorial n! is defined by def factorial(n):
ans = 1
𝑛𝑛! = 1 × 2 × 3 × ⋯ × 𝑛𝑛 i = 1
while i <= n:
• Write a function for factorial? ans = ans * i
i = i + 1
print(ans)

>>> factorial(3)
6
>>> factorial(6)
720
>>>
Factorial

𝑛𝑛! = 1 × 2 × 3 × ⋯ × 𝑛𝑛

1 if 𝑛𝑛 = 0
𝑛𝑛! = �
𝑛𝑛 − 1 ! × 𝑛𝑛 otherwise
Factorial
def factorial(n):
ans = 1
i = 1
while i <= n:
ans = ans * i
i = i + 1
print(ans)

def factorialR(n):
if n == 1:
return 1
else:
return n * factorialR(n-1)
Recursion
• Rules of recursion Must have a terminal
condition
def factorialR(n):
if n == 1:
return 1
else:
return n * factorialR(n-1)

Must reduce the


size of the
problem for
every layer
Fibonacci Number

(Recursion)
Starting from 2
Rabbits
How many ways to arrange cars?
• Let’s say we have two types of vehicles, cars
and buses

• And each car can park into one parking space,


but a bus needs two consecutive ones
• If we have 1 parking space, I can only park a car
1 way

• But if there are 2 parking spaces, we can either


park a bus or two cars
2 ways
•
How many ways to arrange cars?
• So if we have 3 parking spaces, how many
different ways can we park cars and buses?

3 ways
How many ways to arrange cars?
• So if we have 4 parking spaces, how many
different ways can we park cars and buses?

5 ways
How many ways to arrange cars?
• 5 parking spaces?
• 6 parking spaces? #parking spaces #ways
0 1
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 5
5 8
6 13

• Can you figured out THE pattern?


– 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, …
– What is the next number?
How many ways to arrange cars?
• In general, if we have n parking spaces, how many ways
can we park the vehicles?
• You can think backward, the last parking space can be
either a car or a bus
?

• If it’s a car, there are n - 1 spaces left, you can have the
number of way for n - 1 spaces
– Otherwise, it’s the number of way for n - 2 spaces
• So
f (n) = f (n - 1) + f (n - 2) for f(0) = f(1) = 1
Fibonacci Numbers
• Fibonacci numbers are found in
nature (sea-shells, sunflowers, etc)
• http://www.maths.surrey.ac.uk/hos
ted-
sites/R.Knott/Fibonacci/fibnat.html
Challenge
• Write a fibonacci function that can compute
f(n) for n > 1000
Google about Recursion

• Try to search these in Google:


– Do a barrel roll
– Askew
– Anagram
– Google in 1998
– Zerg rush
• More in Google Easter Eggs

You might also like