B.S.W.E. Bachelor of Software Engineering Algorithms & Data Structures

Question 1

What is the time complexity of binary search?

Accepted Answer

O(log n)

Answer

Binary search has O(log n) time complexity because it eliminates half the remaining search space with each comparison.

Question 2

What data structure uses LIFO (Last In, First Out) ordering?

Accepted Answer

Stack

Answer

A stack uses LIFO ordering where the last element pushed is the first one popped, like a stack of plates.

Question 3

What is the time complexity of inserting an element at the beginning of an array?

Accepted Answer

O(n)

Answer

Inserting at the beginning of an array requires shifting all n existing elements one position to the right, resulting in O(n) time.

Question 4

What is a hash table?

Accepted Answer

A data structure using a hash function to map keys to array indices for fast lookup

Answer

A hash table uses a hash function to compute an index into an array of buckets, providing average O(1) time for insertions and lookups.

Question 5

What is the fundamental difference between a stack and a queue?

Accepted Answer

Stacks use LIFO ordering; queues use FIFO ordering for element removal

Answer

Stacks use Last In First Out (LIFO) while queues use First In First Out (FIFO) — the difference is which end elements are removed from.

B.S.W.E. Bachelor of Software Engineering Practice Test