---
title: "A simple clustering algorithm for lists"
url: https://daily.dev/posts/a-simple-clustering-algorithm-for-lists-wqrwlwiwl
source_url: https://cassidoo.co/post/clustering-tiles
type: article
source: "Cassidy's blog"
author: "Cassidy Williams"
published: 2026-05-25T07:27:46.679Z
updated: 2026-05-26T04:00:15.598Z
tags: ["general-programming", "javascript"]
reading_time: 4
upvotes: 14
comments: 2
language: en
---

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# A simple clustering algorithm for lists

**[Cassidy's blog](https://daily.dev/sources/cassidoo)** · [@cassidoo](https://daily.dev/cassidoo) · 4 min read · 14 upvotes · 2 comments

## Summary

A developer describes a clustering algorithm inspired by sorting baby toys, using sub-list reversals to group identical elements together. The approach is greedy and has O(n²) time complexity, implemented in JavaScript without AI assistance. The algorithm is compared to pancake sort and includes a full working code example with inline comments.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://cassidoo.co/post/clustering-tiles>

---

Tags: [#general-programming](https://daily.dev/tags/general-programming), [#javascript](https://daily.dev/tags/javascript)

[View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/a-simple-clustering-algorithm-for-lists-wqrwlwiwl)