What is the primary purpose of the priority queue in Dijkstra's algorithm?
Practice Questions
Q1
What is the primary purpose of the priority queue in Dijkstra's algorithm?
To store all vertices.
To keep track of visited vertices.
To efficiently retrieve the next vertex with the smallest distance.
To sort the edges.
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
What is the primary purpose of the priority queue in Dijkstra's algorithm?
Step 1: Understand that Dijkstra's algorithm is used to find the shortest path in a graph.
Step 2: Recognize that each vertex (or point) in the graph has a distance estimate, which tells us how far it is from the starting point.
Step 3: Realize that we need to explore the vertices in order of their distance estimates, starting with the smallest one.
Step 4: Learn that a priority queue is a special data structure that helps us keep track of these vertices and their distance estimates.
Step 5: Know that the priority queue allows us to quickly find and retrieve the vertex with the smallest distance estimate.
Step 6: Conclude that the primary purpose of the priority queue in Dijkstra's algorithm is to efficiently get the next vertex to explore based on the smallest distance.
