CS 301 – Short Notes

Glossary:
Abstract A set of data values and associated operations that are
Data Type: precisely specified independent of any particular
implementation. Also known as ADT

Algorithm: A computable set of steps to achieve a desired result.

Alias : An alternative name for the same object. A "nickname".

Ancestor: A parent of a node in a tree, the parent of the parent, etc.

Argument: A value passed to a called function by the calling function.

Array : In programming, a list of data values, all of the same type, any
element of which can be referenced by an expression
consisting of the array name followed by an indexing
expression. Arrays are part of the fundamentals of data
structures, which, in turn, are a major fundamental of
computer programming

AVL tree: A balanced binary search tree where the height of the two
subtrees (children) of a node differs by at most one.

Balanced A binary tree where no leaf is more than a certain amount

Binary farther from the root than any other. After inserting or
deleting a node, the tree may rebalanced with "rotations."
Tree :
Big-O A theoretical measure of the execution of an algorithm,
Notation: usually the time or memory needed, given the problem size n,
which is usually the number of items. Informally, saying some
equation f(n) = O(g(n)) means it is less than some constant
multiple of g(n). The notation is read, "f of n is big oh of g of
n".

Binary A complete binary tree where every node has a key more
Heap : extreme (greater or less) than or equal to the key of its parent.

Binary A type of search algorithm that seeks an item, with a known

Search : name, in an ordered list by first comparing the sought item to
the item at the middle of the list's order. The search then
divides the list in two, determines in which half of the order
the item should be, and repeats this process, until the sought
item is found.

Binary A data structure with in which every node refers to a left

Search subtree and a right subtree such that all values in the left
subtree are smaller than the value in the node and all
Tree :
elements in the right subtree are greater than (or equal to) the
value in the node. The top node is called the root. The nodes
with no children (left and right subtrees empty) are called
leaves.

Binary A specific type of tree data structure in which each node has
Tree : at most two subtrees, one left and one right. Binary trees are
often used for sorting information; each node of the binary
search tree contains a key, with values less than that key
added to left subtree and values greater than that key added
to the right subtree.
Bounded A queue limited to a fixed number of items.
Queue :

Bubble Sort by comparing each adjacent pair of items in a list in turn,

Sort : swapping the items if necessary, and repeating the pass
through the list until no swaps are done.

Build- Convert an array into a heap by executing heapify

Heap : progressively closer to the root. For an array of n nodes, this
takes O(n) time under the comparison model.

Child : An item of a tree referred to by a parent item. Every item,

except the root, is the child of some parent.

Circular A linked list in which the rear item refers back to the head
List : item

Circular An implementation of a bounded queue using an array.

Queue :

Collision : When two or more items should be kept in the same location,
especially in hash tables, that is, when two or more different
keys hash to the same value.

Collision A way of handling collisions, that is, when two or more items
Resolution should be kept in the same location, especially in a hash
Scheme : table. The general ways are keeping subsequent items within
the table (open addressing), keeping a list for items which
collide (direct chaining hashing or separate chaining
hashing), keeping a special overflow area, etc. Perfect hashes
 avoid collisions, but may be time-consuming to create.

Complete A complete binary tree of depth d is the strictly binary tree all
Binary of whose leaves are at level d
Tree :

Data An object capable of storing data. A variable or a constant. (A

Object : function is allocated memory within the computer and is
therefore an object; but it is not a data object because it
cannot store data).

Data The term data structure refers to the way data is organized for
Structure use within a program. Correct organization of data can lead to
simpler and more efficient algorithms. Common data
:
structures are linked-lists, stacks, queues and trees.

Descendant: A child of a node in a tree, any of the children of the

children, etc.

Disjoint Set: A set whose members do not overlap, are not duplicated,
etc.

Doubly A data structure in which each element contains pointers to

Linked the next and previous elements in the list, thus forming a
bidirectional linear list.
List :

Dynamic An array whose size may change over time. Items are not only
Array : added or removed, but memory used changes, too.
FIFO : First in first out is a policy that items are processed in order of
arrival. A queue implements this.

Full Binary A binary tree in which each node has exactly zero or two
Tree : children.

Hash A function that maps keys to integers, usually to get an even

Function: distribution on a smaller set of values.

Hash A dictionary in which keys are mapped to array positions by a

Table : hash function. Having more than one key map to the same
position is called a collision. There are many ways to resolve
collisions, but they may be divided into open addressing, in
which all elements are kept within the table, and chaining, in
which additional data structures are used.

Head : The first item of a list.

Heap : An area of memory from which space for dynamic structures

are allocated

Heap Each node in a tree has a key which is more extreme (greater
Property: or less) than or equal to the key of its parent.

Heap. : A complete tree where every node has a key more extreme
(greater or less) than or equal to the key of its parent. Usually
understood to be a binary heap.
Heapify : Rearrange a heap to maintain the heap property, that is, the
key of the root node is more extreme (greater or less) than or
equal to the keys of its children. If the root node's key is not
more extreme, swap it with the most extreme child key, then
recursively heapify that child's subtree. The child subtrees
must be heaps to start.

Height : The maximum distance of any leaf from the root of a tree. If a
tree has only one node (the root), the height is zero.

Huffman A minimal variable-length character encoding based on the

encoding frequency of each character. First, each character becomes a
trivial tree, with the character as the only node. The
:
character's frequency is the tree's frequency. The two trees
with the least frequencies are joined with a new root which is
assigned the sum of their frequencies. This is repeated until
all characters are in one tree. One code bit represents each
level. Thus more frequent characters are near the root and are
encoded with few bits, and rare characters are far from the
root and are encoded with many bits.

In-order Process all nodes of a tree by recursively processing the left

Traversal: subtree, then processing the root, and finally the right
subtree.

Infix A notation in which operators appear between the operands,

Notation: as in 3 + 5

Insertion Sort by repeatedly taking the next item and inserting it into
Sort : the final data structure in its proper order with respect to
items already inserted.
Instance A class is a definition of a set of data and member functions.
: When space for the data is actually allocated, we say that a
member of the class has been instantiated. The instantiation
is called an instance of the class. Each instance has its own
set of data (there is also a mechanism in C++ to define data
that is only allocated once per class, and shared amongst all
instances of the class).

Internal A node of a tree that has one or more child nodes,

Node : equivalently, one that is not a leaf

Key : The part of a group of data by which it is sorted, indexed,

cross referenced, etc.

Leaf : Any node (location) in a tree structure that is at the farthest

distance from the root (primary node), no matter which path is
followed. Thus, in any tree, a leaf is a node at the end of a
branch—one that has no descendants.

Left In a binary search tree, pushing a node N down and to the left
Rotation : to balance the tree. N's right child replaces N, and the right
child's left child becomes N's right child.

Level-order Process all nodes of a tree by depth: first the root, then the
Traversal : children of the root, etc.

LIFO : Last in first out is a policy that the most recently arrived item
is processed first. A stack implements this.

Linear A simple, though inefficient, search algorithm that operates by

Search : sequentially examining each element in a list until the target
element is found or the last has been completely processed.
Linear searches are primarily used only with very short lists.
Also called sequential search.

Linked A data structure in which a list of nodes or elements of a data

List : structure connected by pointers. A singly linked list has one
pointer in each node pointing to the next node in the list; a
doubly linked list has two pointers in each node pointing to
the next and previous nodes. In a circular list, the first and
last nodes of the list are linked together.

max-heap Each node in a tree has a key which is less than or equal to
property : the key of its parent.

Merge : Combine two or more sorted sequences of data into a single

sorted sequence.

Merge A sort algorithm that splits the items to be sorted into two
Sort : groups, recursively sorts each group, and merges them into a
final, sorted sequence.

min-heap Each node in a tree has a key which is greater than or equal
property: to the key of its parent.

Name A name tag in C++ is a set of text characters formed into a

Tag : symbolic word used to refer to an object. Name tags must
start with an alpha character or an underscore. The second or
subsequent characters can be alpha or numeric characters or
the underscore character. All other characters are not allowed.
Capital alpha characters can be used and are interpreted by
C++ as different to their lower case equivalents.
Node : (1) A unit of reference in a data structure. Also called a vertex
in graphs and trees. (2) A collection of information which must
be kept at a single memory location.

Null Tree: A tree which is empty.

Object : Any program entity which uses physical memory in the

computer

Object A concept of programming in which elements of the

Oriented program are coded as stand-alone objects. Each object is
Programming: completely self-contained in that it incorporates methods
whereby the object can manipulate its own
characteristics. A "Door" object, for instance would know
how to open and close itself. It would also be able to
respond to interrogation and advise the enquirer whether
it is currently open or closed.

Open A general collision resolution scheme for a hash table in

Addressing: which all items are stored within the table. In case of
collision, other positions are computed and checked (a
probe sequence) until an empty position is found. Some
ways of computing possible new positions are less efficient
because of clustering.

Overload A term used to refer to the use of one symbol for more than
: one purpose. For instance, in mathematics the "-" symbol is
used both as a negation symbol and as a subtraction symbol.
In C++ the "<
Parameter: A value received by a called function from a calling function.

Perfect Binary A binary tree with all leaf nodes at the same depth. All
Tree : internal nodes have degree 2.

Postorder Process all nodes of a tree by recursively processing the left

Traversal: subtree, then processing the right subtree, and finally the
root.

Prefix A notation in which operators appear before the operands, as

Notation: in +A B

Preorder Process all nodes of a tree by recursively processing the root,

Traversal: then processing the left subtree, and finally the right subtree.

Queue : A data structure with first-in first-out behavior, supporting

the operations enqueue (to insert) and dequeue (to remove)

Quick- An in-place sort algorithm that uses the divide and conquer
Sort : paradigm. It picks an element from the array (the pivot),
partitions the remaining elements into those greater than and
less than this pivot, and recursively sorts the partitions

Recursion: An algorithmic technique where a function, in order to

accomplish a task, calls itself with some part of the task.

Right In a binary search tree, pushing a node N down and to the

right to balance the tree. N's left child replaces N, and the left
Rotation: child's right child becomes N's left child.

Root : The distinguished initial or fundamental item of a tree. The

only item which has no parent

Rotation: To switch children and parents among two or three adjacent

nodes to restore balance to a tree.

Run Time: The amount of time needed to execute an algorithm.

Selection A sort algorithm that repeatedly looks through remaining

Sort : items to find the least one and moving it to its final location.
The run time is (n2), where n is the number of comparisons.
The number of swaps is O(n).

Sibling : A node in a tree that has the same parent as another node is
its sibling.

Singly A data structure in which a list of nodes or elements of a data

Linked structure connected by pointers. A singly linked list has one
pointer in each node pointing to the next node in the list
List :

Sort : Arrange items in a predetermined order. There are dozens of

algorithms, the choice of which depends on factors such as
the number of items relative to working memory, knowledge of
the orderliness of the items or the range of the keys, the cost
of comparing keys vs. the cost of moving items, etc.
Stack : A data structure with last-in first-out behavior, supporting
the operations push (to insert) and pop (to remove)

Strictly A binary tree is said to be a strictly binary tree if every non-

Binary Tree: leaf node in a binary tree has non-empty left and right
subtrees.

String : A list of characters, usually implemented as an array.

Informally a word, phrase, sentence, etc. Since text processing
is so common, a special type with substring operations is
often available.

Structure: A mechanism which allows objects of different types to be

grouped together as a single compound type.

Tail : The last item of a list.

Threaded A binary search tree in which each node uses an otherwise-

Tree : empty left child link to refer to the node's in-order
predecessor and an empty right child link to refer to its in-
order successor.

Tree : A data structure containing zero or more nodes that are linked
together in a hierarchical fashion

Tree A technique for processing the nodes of a tree in some order.

Traversal:
Uniform A conceptual method of open addressing for a hash table. A
Hashing : collision is resolved by putting the item in the next empty
place given by a probe sequence which is independent of
sequences for all other key.

Union : The union of two sets is a set having all members in either set.

Vertex : An item in a graph. Sometimes referred to as a node.

Worst The situation or input that forces an algorithm or data

Case : structure to take the most time or resources.