What is "backjumping"

n. (context comptheory English) A form of backtracking that may move more than one level at a time, used to improve the efficiency of certain algorithms.

In backtracking algorithms, backjumping is a technique that reduces search space, therefore increasing efficiency. While backtracking always goes up one level in the search tree when all values for a variable have been tested, backjumping may go up more levels. In this article, a fixed order of evaluation of variables x, …, x is used, but the same considerations apply to a dynamic order of evaluation.

Image:Backtracking-no-backjumping.svg|A search tree visited by regular backtracking Image:Backtracking-with-backjumping.svg|A backjump: the grey node is not visited