Selection Sort — Theory & Code
Selection Sort is one of the simplest sorting algorithms and a popular choice for learning how sorting works “under the hood.” This post goes beyond the standard explanation—covering the algorithm’s logic, visual steps, Java code, and complete performance analysis. 1. What is Selection Sort? Selection Sort sorts an array by maintaining two regions: Sorted subarray (initially empty, grows from the left). Unsorted subarray (initially the whole array). In each iteration, it picks the minimum element from the unsorted portion and swaps it with the element at the current boundary, thus growing the sorted part by one.:contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4} 2. Step-by-Step Illustration Unsorted: [64] [25] [12] [22] [11] Sorted: [] Iteration 1: Find min from unsorted → 11 Swap 11 with 64: Sorted: [11] Unsorted: [25] [12] [22] [64] Iteration 2: Find min → 12 Swap with 25: Sorted: [11][12] Unsorted: [25][22][64] Continue similarly until fully sorted. Diagrammatic ...