CSci 2101 Problem set 4: Java classes, sorting

Due Friday, April 1 at 11:59pm (by e-mail)

Problem 1 (30 points)

Problem 14 on p. 239 specifies methods and behavior of a set. Implement and test a class Set<E> with the following differences from the one described in the book:

• The class must be generic Set<E>, where E is the type of the elements in the set. For instance, you would be able to create Set<String> or Set<Integer>. All methods that take or return elements should take or return objects of type E.
• The class should use ArrayList, and not an array, to store the elements.
• Instead of the method createSet just write a constructor that creates an empty set, i.e. you should be able to create a set of strings as new Set<String>()
• Other methods are:
  • isEmpty() that returns true if this set is empty and false otherwise,
  • size() that returns the size of the set (the number of elements)
  • add(E element) adds an element to a set if it's not already present.
  • contains(E element) returns true if an element is present in the set and false otherwise.
  • union(Set<E> otherSet) returns a new Set<E> that is the union of this set and the other set. Make sure you follow definition of set union.
  • intersection(Set<E> otherSet) returns a new Set<E> that is the intersection of this set and the other set. Make sure you follow definition of set intersection.
  • removeAll() removes all elements from the set.
  Recall that a set contains every element at most once, so don't add duplicated elements to a set. That's especially important for union and intersection operations.
  Write tests for your methods before you implement the methods. Add them as you are adding new methods.

Use test-first development for this problem: write JUnit tests first, then implement the feature, then write a JUnit test for the next feature, etc. Submit your Set class and your JUnit class. The quality of your testing will be a part of the grade.

Problem 2 (20 points)

Use the same setup that we have used for Insertion sort and Quicksort to implement Comb sort. Comb sort sorts the array by choosing a gap and sorting subsets of elements at the gap distance using bubble sort. Then the gap gets reduced, and the process is repeated. It stops when the gap is reduced to 1, at which point just the regular bubble sort is performed.
The rationale behind this approach is to quickly eliminate small values (known as "turtles") near the end of the array since they slow down the bubble sort.

How to submit

Submit your Java file(s) to me by e-mail. The subject must be Problem Set N, where N is the problem set number. If working in a group, CC your group partner.

CSci 2101 course web site.