4. Dijkstra's Algorithm and Prim's Algorithm
This chapter discusses Prim's algorithm, a greedy algorithm used for finding the minimum spanning tree of a graph. It highlights the similarities and differences between Prim's and Dijkstra's algorithms, particularly in their update functions and overall approach. The chapter also covers the complexity analysis of Prim's algorithm, explaining how the use of data structures can optimize performance.
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Sections
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What we have learnt
- Prim's algorithm is a greedy approach for finding a minimum spanning tree.
- The algorithm operates similarly to Dijkstra's but focuses on one-step distances from the nearest node in the tree.
- To improve efficiency, using a heap can reduce the overall complexity of the updates in Prim's algorithm.
Key Concepts
- -- Prim's Algorithm
- A greedy algorithm that finds a minimum spanning tree for a weighted undirected graph.
- -- Dijkstra's Algorithm
- An algorithm that finds the shortest path from a source node to all other nodes in a graph.
- -- Minimum Spanning Tree
- A subset of the edges of a graph that connects all the vertices together without any cycles and with the minimum possible total edge weight.
- -- Complexity Analysis
- The study of the efficiency of algorithms in terms of time and space during execution.
Additional Learning Materials
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