Question

#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

int recursiveMinimum(int [], int n);

int main () 
{
    int theArray[3] = {1,2,3};

    cout << recursiveMinimum(theArray, 0);
    cout << endl;
    return 0;
}


// pass in array and 0 to indicate first element
// returns smallest number in an array
int recursiveMinimum (int anArray[], int n) // nth element is smallest element in anArray
{
    while (anArray[n+1] != NULL)
    {
        int smallest = n;
        if (anArray[n+1] <= anArray[n])
            smallest = n + 1;
        //if last element has not been reached
        return recursiveMinimum(anArray, smallest);
    }
}

My function exits, but it doesn’t return anything. I tried to set the base case to when the outside of the array is reached. The return 0 line in main is reached so I’m pretty sure the base case in my function is being reached.

Here is the working function:

#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

 int recursiveMinimum(int a[],int min,int index,int size);

int main()
{
    int a[6] = {8, 2, 55, 3, 11, 9};
    cout << recursiveMinimum(a,a[0],1,6) << endl;
    return 0;
}

// pass in the array, the first element, 
// 1 to indicate 2nd element, and the number of elements
int recursiveMinimum(int a[],int min,int i,int size)
{
    if(i == size )
       return min;

    else if(i < size)
    {
       if(a[i] < min)    
          recursiveMinimum(a,a[i], i + 1, size);
       else 
          recursiveMinimum(a,min, i + 1, size);      
    }

}

Thank you to everyone who helped. Due to time constraints I sent out a SOS (Stack Overflow distress Signal), however next time I will definitely step through the debugger prior to asking a question.

Answer 1

You are recursing within the while loop:

while( condition )
recursive call
while( condition )
recursive call
.
.
.

Instead what you probably were thinking was

if( condition )
recursive call
recursive call
recursive call

you see? Get rid of the while and replace it with an “if” statement.