Introduction to Algorithms By Cormen

 

This article reviews the book “Introduction to Algorithms” by Thomas H. Cormen.

The article covers-

• Special features of book
• Analysis of Content
• Analysis of Exercises
• Necessary Instructions
• Conclusion

 

Why Should Be Read?

 

Special Features of Book-

 

The special features of this book are-

• It has an in-depth and elaborative explanation which is unmatched by any other book.
• The algorithms are explained followed by their analysis and proofs.
• It provides a detailed insight into the subject.
• The analysis part is covered very well and multiple readings may be needed for some algorithms.
• The exercise questions are pretty good.
• Some GATE questions have been asked directly from its exercises in the previous year exams.
• Data structures are covered equally good.

 

Analysis of Content-

 

The following table analyzes sections of the book that are relevant for GATE-

 

Chapter No.	GATE Relevant Sections	GATE Topics Covered
1	1.1	Basics of Algorithms
	1.2
2	2.1	Insertion Sort
	2.2
	2.3	Merge Sort
3	All Sections	Asymptotic Notations & Growth of Functions
4	4.1 to 4.3	Divide & Conquer, Solving Recurrences, Master’s Theorem
	4.5
6	All Sections	Heap Sort & Priority Queues
7	7.1	Quick Sort
	7.2
	7.4
8	All Sections	Counting Sort, Radix Sort, Bucket Sort
10	10.1	Stacks, Queues & Linked List
	10.2
	10.4
11	11.1 to 11.4	Hashing, Open Addressing
12	12.1 to 12.3	Binary Trees
15	15.1	Dynamic Programming Algorithms
	15.2
	15.4
16	16.1 to 16.3	Greedy Algorithms
22	All Sections	Graph Representations & Traversal Algorithms
23	All Sections	Minimum Spanning Tree Algorithms (Prim’s and Kruskal’s)
24	24.1 to 24.3	Bellman Ford & Dijkstra’s Algorithm
25	25.2	Floyd-Warshall Algorithm

Covering Only These Sections Is Enough

 

Analysis of Exercises-

 

The following table analyzes exercises of the book that are relevant for GATE-

 

Chapter No.	Question No.
1	1.2-2, 1.2-3
2	2.1-1, 2.1-2, 2.2-1, 2.2-2, 2.3-1, 2.3-3, 2.3-5, 2.3-6, 2.3-7, 2.1, 2.4
3	3.1-1, 3.1-2, 3.1-4, 3.2-3, 3.1, 3.3, 3.4
4	4.2-1, 4.2-3, 4.3-1, 4.3-2, 4.3-3, 4.3-6, 4.3-9, 4.4-1, 4.4-2, 4.4-3, 4.4-4, 4.4-5, 4.5-1, 4.5-3, 4.5-4, 4.1, 4.3, 4.5, 4.6
6	6.1-1 to 6.1-7, 6.2-1, 6.2-6, 6.3-1 to 6.3-3, 6.4-1, 6.4-3, 6.5-1, 6.5-7, 6.5-9, 6.2, 6.3
7	7.1-1 to 7.1-4, 7.2-1 to 7.2-3, 7.4-6, 7.4
8	8.2-1, 8.2-2, 8.3-1, 8.3-2, 8.3-4, 8.4-1, 8.4-2, 8.4-3, 8.2, 8.3
10	10.1-1 to 10.1-7, 10.2-2, 10.2-3, 10.2-8, 10.4-1 to 10.4-6, 10.1
11	11.2-1 to 11.2-3, 11.4-1, 11.4-3
12	12.1-1 to 12.1-5, 12.2-1, 12.2-5, 12.2-6
15	15.1-3 to 15.1-5, 15.2-1, 15.2-6, 15.4-1, 15.4-3
16	16.1-2, 16.1-4, 16.2-1, 16.2-2, 16.2-3, 16.2-6, 16.3-3
22	22.1-1, 22.1-2, 22.1-4, 22.1-6, 22.1-7, 22.2-1, 22.2-2, 22.2-4, 22.2-7, 22.2-8, 22.3-5, 22.3-8, 22.3-9, 22.3-11, 22.3-13, 22.4-1, 22.4-3, 22.4-4, 22.5-1, 22.5-4, 22.1 to 22.3
23	23.1-1 to 23.1-11, 23.2-2 to 23.2-5, 23.2, 23.3
24	24.1-1, 24.1-6, 24.2-1, 24.3-1, 24.3-2, 24.3-10
25	25.2-4, 25.2-6, 25.2-8

Practicing Only These Exercises Is Enough

 

Necessary Instructions-

 

Keep the following instructions in mind while reading the book-

• The book has nearly 1300 pages and all the topics are explained in great detail.
• You need to be pretty selective with what topics you need to read. (Refer above)
• Since GATE does not have subjective questions, so there is no need to cover the proofs.
• However, studying the proofs deepens the knowledge of algorithms.
• Go for studying the proofs only if you have ample time.

 

You can divide reading the book in three levels-

 

Level-01:

 

• Read the algorithm.
• Try to understand how it works and implement on a few examples.
• Implement the algorithm code in some programming language if you have time.
• Prefer C language as it is a part of GATE syllabus.

 

Level-02:

 

• Read the analysis part and proof of correctness for that algorithm.
• This part is important as GATE questions focus on the analysis aspect of algorithms.

 

Level-03:

 

• Try solving the problems at the end of each chapter.
• The problems are of medium and tough difficulty level and requires thorough knowledge.

 

Conclusion-

 

• The book covers all the algorithms in an extensive way focusing equally on the analysis aspect.
• The exercise questions are intuitive and guide the students to cover topics in depth.
• The exercise questions of this book have been asked directly in GATE .
• Most of the questions are at par with the level of questions asked in GATE.
• This book is a must read for every student who wants to learn algorithms.

 

THIS BOOK IS MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR GATE EXAM.

 

 

Amazon Rating

 

Student’s Reviews-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other Recommended Books-

 

Algorithm Design By Kleinberg and Tardos-