Alerts
Wishlist
Cart
Sign In
Categories
Current Affairs & GK
Current Affairs
Show All Current Affairs & GK
eBooks
General Aptitude
Arithmetic Aptitude
Data Interpretation
Show All General Aptitude
General Knowledge
Basic General Knowledge
General Science
Show All General Knowledge
Medical Science
Anatomy
Biochemical Engineering
Biochemistry
Biotechnology
Microbiology
Show All Medical Science
Technical
Database
Digital Electronics
Electronics
Networking
Show All Technical
Verbal and Reasoning
Logical Reasoning
Verbal Ability
Verbal Reasoning
Show All Verbal and Reasoning
What is the worst-case scenario for the number of comparisons in binary search o
Practice Questions
Q1
What is the worst-case scenario for the number of comparisons in binary search on an array of size n?
n
log n
n log n
1
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
What is the worst-case scenario for the number of comparisons in binary search on an array of size n?
Steps
Concepts
Step 1: Understand what binary search is. It is a method to find a target value in a sorted array by repeatedly dividing the search interval in half.
Step 2: Know that binary search starts by comparing the target value to the middle element of the array.
Step 3: If the middle element is equal to the target, the search is complete.
Step 4: If the target is less than the middle element, the search continues in the left half of the array.
Step 5: If the target is greater than the middle element, the search continues in the right half of the array.
Step 6: Each time the search interval is halved, which reduces the number of elements to search.
Step 7: The worst-case scenario occurs when the target is not found or is at one of the ends of the search.
Step 8: The number of times you can halve the array until you reach one element is log base 2 of n (written as log n).
Step 9: Therefore, in the worst case, binary search makes log n comparisons.
No concepts available.
‹
Biology (School & UG)
Chemistry (School & UG)
Civil Engineering
Commerce & Accountancy
Computer Science & IT
Current Affairs & GK
Data Structures & Algorithms
eBooks
Electrical & Electronics Engineering
English (School)
General Aptitude
General Knowledge
General Knowledge & Current Affairs
Languages & Literature
Law & Legal Studies
Major Competitive Exams
Mathematics (School)
Mechanical Engineering
Medical Science
Physics (School & Undergraduate)
Quantitative Aptitude & Reasoning
Social Science (School)
Technical
Verbal and Reasoning
Vocational & Skill Development
›
Soulshift Feedback
×
On a scale of 0–10, how likely are you to recommend
The Soulshift Academy
?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Not likely
Very likely
✕
↑