Breaking the Sorting Barrier: A New Algorithm Speeds Up Shortest-Path Finding
2025-08-07
For decades, a classic problem in computer science—finding the shortest path from a specific starting point in a network to every other point—has been limited by a 'sorting barrier'. Recently, Ran Duan and his team at Tsinghua University have broken this barrier, devising a new algorithm that surpasses all sorting-based algorithms in speed. The algorithm cleverly uses clustering strategies and the Bellman-Ford algorithm, avoiding point-by-point sorting and achieving significant performance improvements, opening a new chapter in shortest-path problem research.