What i learned this week?

• Insertion Sort

• Cyclic Sort Basics

Insertion Sort – The “Hand of Cards” Method

What is it?

Insertion Sort works like how we sort playing cards in our hands — by comparing one card with the ones before it and inserting it at the correct position.

How it works:

• Start from index 1.

• Compare it with all previous elements.

• Shift bigger elements to the right.

• Insert the current element in the right place.

When to use:

• When the array is nearly sorted.

• Simple and easy to implement.

Cyclic Sort – Sorting Numbers in a Range [1, n]

What is it?

Cyclic Sort is used when the array has numbers from 1 to n (or 0 to n-1) and we need to sort them in linear time.

How it works:

• Loop through the array.

• Place each number at its correct index.

• Swap until all numbers are at their correct place.

When to use:

• When the array is guaranteed to have elements from 1 to n with no duplicates.

• Very useful in problems like:

  • Find missing number

  • Find duplicate number

Learning Source

A big shoutout to Kunal Kushwaha for his beginner-friendly and crystal-clear DSA playlist on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/By_5-RRqVeE?si=RXQdy0O0pyCuygSg

My Takeaway

• Sorting is more than just bubble sort!

• Insertion sort is great for nearly sorted arrays.

• Cyclic sort is for solving many DSA problems in O(n).

👉 Stay tuned for Week 4!