Recurrence solving
2 / 2 papers 3 marks both timesFind the complexity of given recurrence relation using Master Method: T(n) = 8T(n/2) + n².
Solve the following recurrence relation using recursion tree method: T(n) = 3T(n/3) + n².
🎯 Attachment 1: How to Pass — For Exam Tension
Minimum study · target 30+ / 60Breathe. You do not need all 6 units, and you do not need 60 out of 60. Passing lives around 27–30 marks out of 60. The plan below puts 30 marks on the table from just Q1 plus Q2 — so even with mistakes, you stay above the pass band. Add one more full question and it becomes 45 marks on the table.
Step 1 — the minimum set (learn these first, in this order)
| Learn | Where it pays | Marks on the table |
| Q1 — pick five shorts | Recurrence · Knapsack difference · LCS short · Branch & Bound · KMP · Divide & Conquer | 15 |
| Q2 | Sorting + Merge Sort (fixed in Q2b) | 15 |
| Total on the table (minimum set) | 30 |
Step 2 — the safe set (add this and you cover 45 marks)
One more full question — Q4 (knapsack/LCS) or Q5 (multistage/backtracking) (15) = 15 more marks. 30 + 15 = 45 out of 60, the distinction line.
Step 3 — how to attempt in the hall (2 hours)
Q1 (25 min) → Q2 (30) → strongest remaining (30) → check (15). Draw each graph once, neatly, and label it — redraws eat the paper.
Honest note, not a guarantee. Pattern from only 2 papers, and AOA rotates topics across slots, so learn the topic, not the slot. It raises your odds; it is not a guarantee.
⚡ Attachment 2: Inside The Papers
Read this first — the cheat code inside the papers
Merge Sort is Q2b in both papers — 10 marks each, the single most reliable 10-mark question in the subject. Learn it cold and Q2 is already two-thirds done.
Everything else rotates: Kruskal vs Prim, Floyd-Warshall vs Dijkstra, LCS, knapsack, multistage, coloring — all appear both times but move slots between Q3, Q4 and Q5. Q1 is always six 3-mark shorts, any five; Q6 is always three 5-mark shorts. Learn the topic, not the slot.
Exam dates are expected, not confirmed for AI & DS (taken from the AI & ML sheet: 17 / 19 / 21 / 25 / 27 Nov, 2:30–4:30 pm). Treat them as expected until the official sheet is seen.
📋 Attachment 3: Model paper — MU's strict pattern
Predicted shape · practice onlyMU sets this paper to a loose template — Q1 and Q2 hold their shape, Q6 is always three 5-mark shorts, and everything else rotates. The table below is that template, read off both papers slot by slot. Below it is a model paper built from the template for practice — it is NOT the real exam paper, and no question in it is claimed to be a leaked or real question. Practise each slot with the Dec / May question listed in the ranked study below.
| Question | a (marks) | b (marks) | c (marks) | Evidence |
| Q1 — any 5 | Six 3-mark shorts — Dec: Master Method · Binary Search · Greedy · Optimality · Backtracking vs B&B · Naïve String Matching; May: Recursion tree · Divide & Conquer · Fractional vs 0/1 knapsack · LCS · Branch & Bound · KMP advantage | Q1 is six 3-mark shorts both papers | ||
| Q2 | Selection Sort (Dec 5) or Prim's MST (May 5) | Merge Sort (10) — FIXED | — | Sorting + spanning tree both times; Merge Sort Q2b fixed |
| Q3 | Big Theta (Dec 5) or Insertion Sort (May 5) | Kruskal MCST (Dec 10) or Dijkstra (May 10) | — | Topics rotate, marks fixed |
| Q4 | Fractional Knapsack (Dec 5) or Backtracking + Graph Coloring (May 5) | LCS (Dec 10) or 0/1 Knapsack DP (May 10) | — | Topics rotate, marks fixed |
| Q5 | Multistage Graph Forward (Dec 5) or 15-puzzle (May 5) | N-Queen (Dec 10) or Multistage shortest distance (May 10) | — | Topics rotate, marks fixed |
| Q6 | Floyd-Warshall (Dec 5) or Asymptotic notations (May 5) | Graph Coloring (Dec 5) or KMP (May 5) | Rabin-Karp (Dec 5) or Sum of Subset (May 5) | Q6 is three 5-mark shorts both times |
The model paper to practise (predicted shape, 60 marks)
Q1 (any 5 × 3): Recurrence (Master Method) · Knapsack difference · LCS short · Branch & Bound · KMP advantage · Divide & Conquer.
Q2 (5 + 10): Prim's MST + Merge Sort (the fixed Q2b).
Q3 (5 + 10): Insertion Sort + Dijkstra.
Q4 (5 + 10): Fractional Knapsack + LCS (long).
Q5 (5 + 10): Multistage Graph + N-Queen.
Q6 (5 + 5 + 5): Floyd-Warshall + Graph Coloring + Rabin-Karp.
If you can attempt Q1 + Q2 + any one of Q3–Q5 from this shape, you are attempting 45 marks with the most predictable material first.
📊 Attachment 4: Ranked PYQs & Question Bank
Sorted by frequency and yield. Tick the boxes as you master each topic to watch your marks tracker update live.
Unit I — Introduction
Rank 2 · 6 questionsThe analysis toolkit itself — Master Method recurrences, asymptotic notation, and the two elementary sorts.
Selection Sort
1 paper 5 marksSort the following numbers using the Selection Sort, and show the array after each pass: 28, 17, 20, 75, 13, 15.
Insertion Sort
1 paper 5 marksSort the following elements using insertion sort: 90, 1, 4, 2, 78, 45, 39, 58, 79. Show output after each pass. Also, derive complexity of insertion sort.
Asymptotic notations
1 paper 5 marksExplain the different asymptotic notations with graphs.
Big Theta (Θ)
1 paper 5 marksExplain Big Theta (Θ) notation with a suitable example.
Unit II — Divide and Conquer Approach
Rank 3 · 4 questionsSplit, solve, combine — Merge Sort is the fixed 10-mark anchor of the whole paper, and Binary Search is its 3-mark cousin.
Merge Sort (FIXED 10 MARKS)
2 / 2 papers 10 marks both timesWrite an algorithm for Merge Sort. Derive its time complexity. Sort the following elements using Merge Sort: 32, 55, 17, 48, 64, 26.
Sort the following elements using Merge Sort and hence derive the complexity of Merge Sort: 34, 9, 56, 10, 78, 61, 98, 23, 38.
Binary Search
1 paper 3 marksWrite an algorithm for Binary Search.
Divide and Conquer
1 paper 3 marksExplain Divide and Conquer strategy with diagram.
Unit III — Greedy Method Approach
Rank 2 · 6 questionsGreedy grabs the best-looking choice at each step — Dijkstra, both spanning-tree algorithms and Fractional Knapsack all run on it.
Kruskal's MCST
1 paper 10 marksWhat is Minimum Cost Spanning Tree? Write Kruskal's algorithm and state its time complexity. Find Minimum Cost Spanning Tree for following graph using Kruskal's Algorithm: [graph: A–B 7, B–C 7, C–D 3, D–E 6, E–F 9, F–A 5, A–G 8, B–G 3, D–G 2, F–G 4].
Dijkstra's shortest path
1 paper 10 marksFind the shortest path for the following graph using Dijkstra's algorithm: (Source vertex is A). [graph: A–B 3, A–D 8, B–E 6, B–D 5, D–E 3, D–F 2, E–C 9, E–F 1, F–C 3].
Fractional Knapsack
2 / 2 papers min 3 · max 5 marksConsider a Knapsack with capacity W = 16. There are six items with following weights and profits. (P1…P6) = (10, 5, 15, 7, 6, 18); (W1…W6) = (2, 3, 5, 7, 1, 4). Find the maximum profit using Fractional Knapsack algorithm.
Differentiate between fractional and 0/1 knapsack problem (give minimum 5 relevant points).
Prim's MST
1 paper 5 marksFind the Minimum spanning tree for the following graph using Prim's algorithm: [nodes 1–6; edges: 5–4: 9, 4–1: 1, 4–3: 5, 4–2: 3, 1–5: 4, 1–2: 2, 3–2: 3, 3–6: 8, 2–6: 7].
Greedy general method
1 paper 3 marksExplain the general method of the Greedy Approach.
Unit IV — Dynamic Programming Approach
Rank 1 · 7 questionsDP solves small, remembers, reuses — multistage graphs, LCS, 0/1 knapsack and Floyd-Warshall all live here, and it is the heaviest unit in the paper.
Multistage Graph
2 / 2 papers min 5 · max 10 marksWhat is Multistage Graph? Explain Forward Approach method to find optimal path in Multistage Graph.
Find the shortest distance from vertex 1 to vertex 12 for the following graph: [multistage graph: 1→2: 9, 1→3: 7, 1→4: 3, 1→5: 2; 2→6: 4, 2→7: 2; 3→6: 2, 3→7: 7; 4→8: 11; 5→8: 11, 5→7: 8; 6→9: 6, 6→10: 5; 7→9: 4, 7→10: 3; 8→10: 5, 8→11: 6; 9→12: 4; 10→12: 2; 11→12: 6].
LCS — Longest Common Subsequence
2 / 2 papers min 3 · max 10 marksWrite an algorithm to find Longest Common Subsequences between two given strings. Derive its time complexity. Find the LCS between following strings: X = AVANTIKA; Y = KARNAVATI.
Find the LCS for the following sequences: X = ABCDE; Y = ACE.
0/1 Knapsack by DP
1 paper 10 marksSolve the following knapsack problem using dynamic programming: (Capacity = 7). Table: I1: Weight 1, Profit 50; I2: Weight 2, Profit 40; I3: Weight 4, Profit 70; I4: Weight 5, Profit 80; I5: Weight 1, Profit 10.
Floyd-Warshall
1 paper 5 marksFind the All-Pair Source Shortest path for all the vertices using Floyd-Warshall Algorithm: [directed graph: A→B 7, B→A 8, B→C −3, A→C 5, C→A 6].
Principle of Optimality
1 paper 3 marksExplain the Principle of Optimality as applied to Dynamic Programming.
Unit V — Backtracking and Branch and Bound
Rank 1 · 7 questionsTry, fail, go back — or try smartly with pruning. N-Queen, graph coloring, sum of subsets and the 15-puzzle all live here.
Backtracking family
2 / 2 papers min 3 · max 5 marksDifferentiate between Backtracking and Branch & Bound techniques.
Explain the concept of Branch and Bound.
Explain backtracking and how it is used to solve the graph coloring problem.
Graph Coloring
1 paper 5 marksExplain Graph Coloring method with suitable example.
N-Queen Problem
1 paper 10 marksWhat is the N-Queen Problem? Design a backtracking algorithm to solve it. Provide step-by-step working of it using suitable example.
15-puzzle
1 paper 5 marksDraw the partial state space tree for 15-puzzle problem. Specify the complexity of 15 puzzle problem.
Sum of Subset
1 paper 5 marksSolve the following sum of subset Problem: S = {3, 4, 5, 6} and sum = 9.
Unit VI — String Matching Algorithms
Rank 3 · 4 questionsThree pattern-searching algorithms and nothing else — Naïve, Rabin-Karp and KMP.
KMP String Matching
1 paper min 3 · max 5 marksExplain the advantage of KMP algorithm over Naïve string matching algorithm.
Explain KMP String matching algorithm with example.
Rabin-Karp
1 paper 5 marksWrite Rabin Karp String Matching Algorithm. State its time complexity.
Naïve String Matching
1 paper 3 marksExplain the Naive String-Matching Algorithm.
💡 Attachment 5: Solutions — Step by Step
Solutions for AOA. Step-by-step solutions land here, one per question, in the same order as the ranked topics above.
Solution: Q1 — six short skills
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
Solution: Unit I — Introduction
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
Solution: Unit II — Divide and Conquer Approach
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
Solution: Unit III — Greedy Method Approach
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
Solution: Unit IV — Dynamic Programming Approach
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
Solution: Unit V — Backtracking and Branch and Bound
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
Solution: Unit VI — String Matching Algorithms
Coming tomorrow — step-by-step, in this order.
🌐 Attachment 6: Find Anything in 2 Taps (All Subjects)
Switch between subjects or jump straight to any section across Sem III.
The Whole Semester Overview
This site is built for the full semester, not one page at a time. Every subject gets the same five attachments, in the same place.
| Subject | Ranked PYQs | Model paper | Pass plan | Exact papers | Solutions |
| Maths (N2113111) Computer · AI&DS · CS-IoT | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | From tomorrow |
| DSGT (N2113112) Computer · AI&DS · CS-IoT | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | From tomorrow |
| AOA (N2113113) Computer · AI&DS · CS-IoT | Live — on this page | Live — above | Live — above | Live — /papers/#aoa | From tomorrow |
| COA (N2113114) Computer · AI&DS · CS-IoT | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page |
| Gen AI (OE, 2013311) Computer · AI&DS | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | Live — own page | From tomorrow |