STL Algorithms

The `<algorithm>` header in the STL provides a large collection of functions designed to perform common operations on ranges of elements. These algorithms are generic because they operate on iterators, not on the containers themselves. This makes them incredibly versatile. To use an algorithm, you typically provide it with two iterators defining a range (`[begin, end)`) on which to operate, plus any other necessary parameters. For example, `std::sort(myVector.begin(), myVector.end());` will sort the elements in `myVector`. `std::find(myVector.begin(), myVector.end(), valueToFind);` will search for `valueToFind` within the vector and return an iterator to the first occurrence, or the `end` iterator if the value is not found. Other common algorithms include `std::copy` (to copy elements from one range to another), `std::reverse` (to reverse the order of elements), `std::count` (to count occurrences of a value), and `std::for_each` (to apply a function to every element in a range). Using these pre-written, highly optimized algorithms is almost always better than writing your own loops for these tasks. They are less error-prone, more expressive, and often more performant. Learning to effectively use the functions in `<algorithm>` is a key step in becoming a proficient C++ programmer.