from Hacker News

What are some of the coolest algorithms you know?

by ParallelThread on 7/22/22, 6:36 PM with 4 comments

• by porcoda on 7/22/22, 6:57 PM

  The Fast Fourier transform is one of my favorites. Aside from its usual place in signal analysis, it’s useful for performing convolutions (see convolution theorem), computing derivatives, and other things. Plus, it’s super satisfying to walk through the derivation from the mathematics and see the Cooley-Tukey algorithm pop out at the end. That was one of my favorite sections to teach when I taught a data analysis class a decade and a half ago.

• by Bostonian on 7/22/22, 6:41 PM

  The sweep algorithm for computing least-squares multiple regression coefficients for all subsets of predictor variables -- see https://blogs.sas.com/content/iml/2018/04/18/sweep-operator-... .

• by cratermoon on 7/22/22, 6:43 PM

  I dunno if it's "cool" in the sense of something I'd want to ever use, but Sleep Sort is amusing. https://kevlinhenney.medium.com/need-something-sorted-sleep-...

• by trifit on 7/22/22, 6:41 PM

  1- blissfully rising in morning 2- eating a large meal 3- successfully resume sleep

  repeat indefinitely