Bellman-Ford Algorithm Quiz
1. What is the primary difference between the Bellman-Ford algorithm and
Dijkstra’s algorithm?
A. Bellman-Ford only works with positive edge weights
B. Bellman-Ford works with negative edge weights, while
Dijkstra’s does not
C. Dijkstra’s works with negative cycles, while Bellman-Ford
does not D. Bellman-Ford is faster than Dijkstra’s
2. What type of graphs cause both Bellman-Ford and Dijkstra’s to fail?
A. Graphs with positive weights
B. Graphs with cycles
C. Graphs with negative cycles
D. Graphs with self-loops
3. Why does Dijkstra’s fail with negative edge weights?
A. It doesn’t iterate enough times
B. It only considers outgoing edges
C. It uses a greedy approach
D. It doesn’t track negative weights
4. In Bellman-Ford, how many iterations are required to find the shortest path?
A. Number of vertices (V)
B. V – 1 iterations
C. Number of edges (E)
D. E – 1 iterations
5. What happens if there are more than V – 1 edges in a path?
A. The algorithm terminates early
B. A cycle is detected
C. The algorithm fails
D. The path weight becomes infinite
6. What is the purpose of updating along all edges in each iteration of
Bellman-Ford? A. To find cycles in the graph
B. To guarantee shortest paths
C. To remove negative weights
D. To reduce time complexity
7. What is the initial distance set for the starting node in Bellman-Ford?
A. Infinity
B. 1
C. Zero
D. One
8. What is the initial distance set for all nodes except the starting node?
A. Zero
B. 1
C. Infinity
D. One
9. What happens if no updates occur during an iteration?
A. The algorithm stops early
B. The algorithm restarts
C. The algorithm detects a cycle
D. The algorithm skips the next iteration
10.What is a “simple path” in the context of Bellman-Ford?
A. A path with no repeated vertices
B. A path with no negative weights
C. A path with minimal edges
D. A path with no outgoing edges
11.What is guaranteed after completing V – 1 iterations in Bellman-Ford?
A. Detection of negative cycles
B. The shortest path to all nodes
C. The fastest runtime
D. The longest path
12.What kind of graph does Bellman-Ford operate on?
A. Directed, weighted graphs
B. Undirected, unweighted graphs
C. Directed, unweighted graphs
D. Undirected, weighted graphs
13.How does Bellman-Ford handle negative edges differently from Dijkstra’s?
A. It ignores them
B. It considers them in every iteration
C. It converts them to positive weights
D. It removes them from the graph
14.Why does Bellman-Ford not use a greedy approach?
A. It processes all edges in every iteration
B. It skips edges with negative weights
C. It prioritizes nodes with larger distances
D. It terminates after one iteration
15.What factor affects the number of iterations needed in Bellman-Ford?
A. The number of edges in the graph
B. The number of vertices in the graph
C. The order in which edges are visited
D. The size of negative weights
16-20 (Answer the following question based on the picture provided)
16. What is the distance of vertex Z after the first iteration?
a) 8
b) 5
c) ∞
d) 9
17. Which edge causes the distance of X to update in the second
iteration?
a) A → V
b) Z → X
c) W → X
d) X → Z
18. What is the shortest distance to vertex Y after the second
iteration?
a) 9
b) 6
c) 7
d) 8
19. What does the Bellman-Ford algorithm check for after completing |V| - 1
iterations?
a) Maximum weight cycle
b) Negative weight cycles
c) The shortest path to the source
d) Whether all vertices are reachable
20. What is the final shortest distance to vertex W?
a) 10
b) 9
c) 11
d) 8
