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Getting Started with Python

You're reading from   Getting Started with Python Understand key data structures and use Python in object-oriented programming

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Product type Course
Published in Feb 2019
Publisher Packt
ISBN-13 9781838551919
Length 722 pages
Edition 1st Edition
Languages
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Authors (3):
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Benjamin Baka Benjamin Baka
Author Profile Icon Benjamin Baka
Benjamin Baka
Fabrizio Romano Fabrizio Romano
Author Profile Icon Fabrizio Romano
Fabrizio Romano
Dusty Phillips Dusty Phillips
Author Profile Icon Dusty Phillips
Dusty Phillips
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Toc

Table of Contents (31) Chapters Close

Title Page
Copyright and Credits
About Packt
Contributors
Preface
1. A Gentle Introduction to Python FREE CHAPTER 2. Built-in Data Types 3. Iterating and Making Decisions 4. Functions, the Building Blocks of Code 5. Files and Data Persistence 6. Principles of Algorithm Design 7. Lists and Pointer Structures 8. Stacks and Queues 9. Trees 10. Hashing and Symbol Tables 11. Graphs and Other Algorithms 12. Searching 13. Sorting 14. Selection Algorithms 15. Object-Oriented Design 16. Objects in Python 17. When Objects Are Alike 18. Expecting the Unexpected 19. When to Use Object-Oriented Programming 20. Python Object-Oriented Shortcuts 21. The Iterator Pattern 22. Python Design Patterns I 23. Python Design Patterns II 24. Testing Object-Oriented Programs 1. Other Books You May Enjoy Index

Binary search


A binary search is a search strategy used to find elements within a list by consistently reducing the amount of data to be searched and thereby increasing the rate at which the search term is found.

To use a binary search algorithm, the list to be operated on must have already been sorted.

The binary term carries a number of meanings and helps us put our minds in the right frame to understand the algorithm.

A binary decision has to be made at each attempt to find an item in the list. One critical decision is to guess which part of the list is likely to house the item we are looking for. Would the search term be in the first half of second half of the list, that is, if we always perceive the list as being comprised of two parts?

Instead of moving from one cell of the list to the other, if we employ the use of an educated guessing strategy, we are likely to arrive at the position where the item will be found much faster.

As an example, lets take it that we want to find the middle...

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