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Selection Sort

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from collections.abc import MutableSequence
from typing import Any, Protocol


class Comparable(Protocol):
    def __lt__(self, other: Any, /) -> bool: ...


def selection_sort[T: Comparable](collection: MutableSequence[T]) -> MutableSequence[T]:
    """
    Sorts a list in ascending order using the selection sort algorithm.

    Selection sort divides the input list into a sorted and unsorted region.
    It repeatedly finds the minimum element from the unsorted region and
    places it at the end of the sorted region.

    Time Complexity: O(n²) in all cases
    Space Complexity: O(1)

    :param collection: A mutable sequence of comparable items to be sorted.
    :return: The same sequence sorted in ascending order.


    Time Complexity: O(n^2) - Due to the nested loops, where n is the length
        of the collection. The outer loop runs n-1 times, and the inner loop
        runs n-i-1 times for each iteration.
    Space Complexity: O(1) - Only a constant amount of extra space is used
        for variables (length, i, min_index, k).
    Examples:
    >>> selection_sort([0, 5, 3, 2, 2])
    [0, 2, 2, 3, 5]

    >>> selection_sort([])
    []

    >>> selection_sort([-2, -5, -45])
    [-45, -5, -2]

    >>> selection_sort([1])
    [1]

    >>> selection_sort([5, 4, 3, 2, 1])
    [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

    >>> selection_sort([1, 2, 3, 4, 5])
    [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

    >>> selection_sort([3, 3, 3, 3])
    [3, 3, 3, 3]

    >>> selection_sort([0])
    [0]

    >>> selection_sort([2, -3, 0, 5, -1])
    [-3, -1, 0, 2, 5]

    >>> selection_sort([0, 5, 3, 2, 2]) == sorted([0, 5, 3, 2, 2])
    True

    >>> selection_sort([-2, -5, -45]) == sorted([-2, -5, -45])
    True

    >>> selection_sort(["d", "a", "c", "b"])
    ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd']

    >>> selection_sort([3.2, 1.1, 2.4, 0.5])
    [0.5, 1.1, 2.4, 3.2]
    """
    length = len(collection)
    for i in range(length - 1):
        min_index = i
        for k in range(i + 1, length):
            if collection[k] < collection[min_index]:
                min_index = k
        if min_index != i:
            collection[i], collection[min_index] = collection[min_index], collection[i]
    return collection


if __name__ == "__main__":
    user_input = input("Enter numbers separated by a comma:\n").strip()
    unsorted = [int(item) for item in user_input.split(",")]
    sorted_list = selection_sort(unsorted)
    print("Sorted List:", sorted_list)

About this Algorithm

Problem Statement

Given an unsorted array of n elements, write a function to sort the array

Approach

  • select the smallest element from the array
  • put it at the beginning of the array
  • then select the smallest array from the remaining unsorted list
  • append it to the sorted array at the beginning
  • keep doing this for every element of the array
  • repeat the above process n times

Time Complexity

O(n^2) Worst case performance

O(n^2) Best-case performance

O(n^2) Average performance

Space Complexity

O(1) Worst case

Example

arr[] = {80, 10, 40, 30}
Indexes: 0   1   2   3    

1. Index = 0
	Select the minimum number from the array (between index 0-3), ie, 10
2. Swap 10  and 80 (arr[0])
3. The array now is {10, 80, 40, 30}

4. Index = 1
	Select the minimum number from the array (between index 1-3), ie, 30
5. Swap 30 and 80 (arr[1])
6. The array now is {10, 30, 40, 80}

7. Index = 2
	Select the minimum number from the array (between index 2-3), ie, 40
8. Swap 40 and 40 (arr[2])
9. The array now is {10, 30, 40, 80}

The array is now sorted.

Video Explanation

A video explaining the Selection Sort Algorithm

Animation Explanation