The minimum element is found!

Why is the initial value of the loop variable set to currentIndex + 1? The element at currentIndex is our first candidate for the minimum; the loop compares it with the following elements.

var currentIndex = 0;
// Look for the minimum element starting from second position
// [4, 2, 1, 3]

var currentIndex = 1;
// Look for the minimum element starting from third position
// [4, 2, 1, 3]

How do we find the minimum value from the current position to the end of the array?

1. Add variable minValue to store the minimum value.
2. Suppose that the element at currentIndex is the minimum one. Therefore, let’s store the value of the element at currentIndex in minValue before the loop.
3. At each iteration of the loop, we compare the current element with minValue value.
4. If the current element is less than minValue, then write it in minValue.

If the first element was the minimum one, then value minValue in the loop will not change. If after the first element there were elements with a lesser value, this value will be written in minValue in the loop.

In any case, the minimum element will be found.

Please note that this algorithm will not work for empty arrays. In order for the algorithm to work, we need at least one element to denote it as the minimum element before the loop begins.