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algorithmmathprerequisites

Prerequisites for understanding algorithms?


What areas of math are prerequisite for learning algorithms?


Solution

  • I guess it depends a lot about the kind of algorithm you want to use and how deeply you want to understand them.

    • The understand of the usual basic data structures needs almost no math background.

    • Most of the graphical algorithms requires knowledge of trigonometry and spatial geometry.

    • Algorithms about physics engine are easier to understand if you have some physics basis

    • If you want your program to help you to take decisions, you might need to study operational research which is a really huge sub-fields of math which includes graph theory, game theory, optimisation (which then includes analysis and linera albegra)

    In any case, having a logic/mathematical mind obviously helps a lot for the understanding and to check/prove that your code can/cannot work.