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Recursion Tree Method

The document explains the concept of a recursion tree, which visually represents how a recursive function divides a problem into subproblems, with each node indicating a recursive subproblem and its associated cost. It emphasizes the utility of recursion trees in visualizing problem breakdowns and calculating overall time complexity, particularly for divide-and-conquer algorithms. Examples of recurrence relations, such as those used in Merge Sort and Binary Search, are provided to illustrate the application of recursion trees.

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18 views7 pages

Recursion Tree Method

The document explains the concept of a recursion tree, which visually represents how a recursive function divides a problem into subproblems, with each node indicating a recursive subproblem and its associated cost. It emphasizes the utility of recursion trees in visualizing problem breakdowns and calculating overall time complexity, particularly for divide-and-conquer algorithms. Examples of recurrence relations, such as those used in Merge Sort and Binary Search, are provided to illustrate the application of recursion trees.

Uploaded by

jipiha8024
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

Recursion Tree Method

Analyzing Recurrence Relations


Visually
What is a Recursion Tree
• Definition: A recursion tree is a visual
representation of how a recursive function
breaks a problem down into subproblems.
– Each node in the tree represents a recursive
subproblem.
– The children of a node represent the further
subproblems that arise when you solve that node.
– The cost at each node shows the amount of work
done outside the recursive calls
Why Use Recursion Trees?
• Visualize the breakdown of a problem.
• Understand how much work is done at each
level.
• Sum up the total work to find the overall time
complexity.
Example Recurrence
• Example: Merge Sort
T(n) = 2T(n/2) + O(n)
• Problem splits into 2 subproblems.
• O(n) cost for splitting & merging.
When to Use Recursion Tree
• You have a divide-and-conquer algoritham
• recurrence, like T(n) = aT(n/b) + f(n).
• You want to visualize the work breakdown.
Example Practice
Try drawing recursion trees for:
• T(n) = T(n/2) + O(1)
(Binary Search → O(log n))
• T(n) = 3T(n/4) + O(n)
(Strassen’s Algorithm style)
• T(n) = 2T(n/2) + O(n^2)
(Naive matrix multiplication)

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