A sorting algorithm is an algorithm that puts elements of a list in a certain order. The most-used orders are numerical order and lexicographical order. Efficient sorting is important for optimizing the use of other algorithms (such as search and merge algorithms) which require input data to be in sorted lists; it is also often useful for canonicalizing data and for producing human-readable output. More formally, the output must satisfy two conditions: The output is in nondecreasing order (each element is no smaller than the previous element according to the desired total order); The output is...

In linear algebra, a minor of a matrix A is the determinant of some smaller square matrix, cut down from A by removing one or more of its rows or columns. Minors obtained by removing just one row and one column from square matrices (first minors) are required for calculating matrix cofactors, which in turn are useful for computing both the determinant and inverse of square matrices. == Definition and illustration == === First minors === If A is a square matrix, then the minor of the entry in the i-th row and j-th column (also called the (i,j) minor, or a first minor) is the determinant ...