Exam 7: Recursive Algorithms

An understanding of recursion is essential to programming any algorithm.

A properly structured recursive algorithm should always contain a Boolean expression in a selection sequence.

The power of recursion in computer programming is the way in which computer scientists use recursive algorithms to analyze and solve complex problems.

____ occurs when an algorithm does not contain any instructions about when to stop the recursion.

The term ____ implies that an algorithm calls itself repeatedly without stopping.

The pseudocode for a recursive method is shown below. What statement is missing from the area labeled (c)? Sailboat.sail to (target) (a) If ( not [sailboat is within 5 meters of target] ) { Do together { Sailboat.turn to face target Sailboat.move forward 2 meters } (b) } (c)

The pseudocode for a recursive method is shown below. What statement is missing from the area labeled (b)? Biplane.taxi (target) (a) If ( [biplane.distance to target] > 1 meter) { Biplane.point at target Biplane.move forward 1 meter (b) } (c)

Ferns have a recursive structure.

The computer must set up a section in its memory every time a new method is called - except when the new method is a copy of an existing method.

The term ____ is used to describe the processor time and storage space in a computer's memory needed to manage a method as it runs.

The term ____ is just another name for looping.

Generally, a method that uses exponential recursion is often very easy to replace with a more efficient iterative solution.

In Alice, clicking on the ____ button allows you to enter Scene Editor mode.

Exponentially recursive algorithms are often far more efficient than iterative solutions because they can repeatedly break a problem into several smaller parts and then attack those smaller parts in a way that an iterative algorithm cannot.

In conditional exponentially recursive algorithms, the recursive step breaks the problem into smaller parts, and then calls the algorithm itself for each of those parts, continuing to do so until the base case is reached.

The recursive Sierpinski gasket algorithm is an example of ____ because it calls itself three times.

The pseudocode for a recursive method is shown below. What statement is missing from the area labeled (a)? Biplane.taxi (target) (a) If ( [biplane.distance to target] > 1 meter) { Biplane.point at target Biplane.move forward 1 meter (b) } (c)

A(n) ____ is one that uses a loop to repeat a set of instructions.

A linear recursion graph looks like a ____.

Many of the most important algorithms in computing - such as those used to search large databases quickly - depend on the use of recursion.