What is pseudocode and why is it well-suited for representing algorithms?
What will be an ideal response?
Most computer scientists use a notation called pseudocode to design and represent algorithms. This is a set of English language constructs designed to resemble statements in a programming language but that do not actually run on a computer. Pseudocode represents a compromise between the two extremes of natural and formal languages. It is simple, highly readable, and has virtually no grammatical rules. (In fact, pseudocode is sometimes called a programming language without the details.) However, because it contains only statements that have a well-defined structure, it is easier to visualize the organization of a pseudocode algorithm than one represented as long, rambling natural-language paragraphs. In addition, because pseudocode closely resembles many popular programming languages, the subsequent translation of the algorithm into a computer program is relatively simple. Pseudocode is not a formal language with rigidly standardized syntactic and semantic rules and regulations. On the contrary, it is an informal design notation used solely to express algorithms. One of the nice features of pseudocode is that you can adapt it to your own personal way of thinking and problem solving.
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