Exploring the A* Algorithm

What is the primary purpose of the A* algorithm in computer science?

• Sorting data

• Pathfinding and graph traversal

• Data compression

• Image processing

Which of the following is a key component of the A* algorithm that helps it find the shortest path?

• Depth-first search

• Heuristic function

• Bubble sort

• Binary search

In the context of the A* algorithm, what does the heuristic function estimate?

• The total cost from the start node to the goal node

• The distance from the current node to the goal node

• The number of nodes in the graph

• The time complexity of the algorithm

Which of the following is a common application of the A* algorithm?

• Weather forecasting

• Pathfinding in video games

• Financial analysis

• Text editing

How does the A* algorithm differ from Dijkstra's algorithm?

• A* uses a heuristic to guide its search, while Dijkstra's does not

• A* is faster than Dijkstra's in all cases

• Dijkstra's algorithm is only used for sorting

• A* can only be used on undirected graphs

What is the time complexity of the A* algorithm in the worst case scenario?

Which of the following is a limitation of the A* algorithm?

• It cannot find the shortest path

• It requires a lot of memory for large graphs

• It is not suitable for real-time applications

• It can only be used for directed graphs

In which scenario would you prefer using the A* algorithm over the Breadth-First Search (BFS) algorithm?

• When the graph is very small

• When you need the shortest path in a weighted graph

• When the graph is unweighted

• When you need to explore all nodes