How does the pancake sort algorithm work?

How does the pancake sort algorithm work?

The pancake sort algorithm is a sorting algorithm that works by repeatedly flipping the largest unsorted element to its correct position. Here is how it works:

1. Start with the given unsorted list of elements.
2. Find the largest element in the list.
3. Flip the sublist from the beginning of the list to the position of the largest element, which brings the largest element to the beginning of the list.
4. Now, flip the entire list, which moves the largest element to the end of the list.
5. Repeat steps 2-4 for the remaining unsorted sublist, excluding the last element that is already in its correct position.
6. Continue this process until the entire list is sorted.

The pancake sort algorithm essentially works by repeatedly flipping elements to bring the largest element to its correct position, gradually sorting the list from the largest to the smallest element. It is called "pancake sort" because the flipping operation resembles flipping pancakes in a pan.