21.1. Introduction to Huffman Codes

Try these first

1. 1.

   What do Huffman Codes optimize?

   Hint

   Think about how data is transmitted.

2. 2.

   What is a prefix code?

   Hint

   Consider what happens when decoding.

3. 3.

   What is the primary function of Huffman Codes?

   • To create fixed length codes
   • To assign variable length codes based on frequency
   • To encrypt data

   Hint

   Remember the goal of encoding.

4. 4.

   True or False: Prefix codes can create ambiguities in the encoding process.

   • True
   • False

   Hint

   What happens when two codes share a prefix?

5. 5.

   Construct a Huffman encoding tree for the characters 'a', 'b', 'c', and 'd' with frequencies 0.15, 0.30, 0.25, and 0.30 respectively. What coding will you assign to each character?

   Hint

   Combine the two characters with lowest frequency first.

6. 6.

   Given a sentence, analyze it to determine character frequencies. Create an optimal Huffman code, outlining the steps taken in your process.

   Hint

   Frequency count is key before moving to coding.