Python Data Structures and Algorithms

Recursive functions

Recursion is one of the most fundamental concepts of computer science. In Python, we can implement a recursive function simply by calling it within its own function body. To stop a recursive function turning into an infinite loop, we need at least one argument that tests for a terminating case to end the recursion. This is sometimes called the base case. It should be pointed out that recursion is different from iteration. Although both involve repetition, iteration loops through a sequence of operations, whereas recursion repeatedly calls a function. Both need a selection statement to end. Technically, recursion is a special case of iteration known as tail iteration, and it is usually always possible to convert an iterative ...