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Module Quiz

Complete this quiz after finishing the concept and practice pages.

Question 1: Binary Search Validity​

What condition must be true before binary search is a valid move?

Answer: The data must already be sorted by the same ordering you plan to search against. Without sorted order, halving the space is unjustified.

Question 2: Big O​

What does Big O describe in plain language?

Answer: It describes how the work or memory grows as the input grows. It is about scaling behavior, not exact stopwatch time for one run.

Question 3: Data Tradeoff​

Why can an array feel fast for reads but awkward for middle insertions?

Answer: Indexed reads are direct, but inserting in the middle often requires shifting many later elements to open space.

Question 4: Hash Tables​

Why is a hash table fast on average but not magic?

Answer: A good hash function spreads keys so lookup usually reaches the right bucket quickly, but collisions still exist and can slow the work down.

Question 5: Recursion​

What are the two parts every recursive function needs?

Answer: A base case that stops the recursion and a recursive case that moves toward a smaller or simpler version of the same problem.

Question 6: Call Stack​

What is the call stack doing during recursion?

Answer: It holds the unfinished work from each call so execution can return in reverse order once the base case is reached.

Question 7: Sorting Shape​

What is the structural difference between selection sort and quicksort?

Answer: Selection sort repeatedly scans for the next smallest item, while quicksort partitions the data around a pivot and solves smaller subproblems recursively.

Question 8: Pivot Role​

What job does the pivot perform in quicksort?

Answer: It separates values into groups relative to the pivot so the algorithm can sort the smaller partitions independently.

Question 9: Graph Thinking​

Why does breadth-first search need a queue?

Answer: The queue preserves first-in, first-out order so nodes are explored layer by layer, which is what gives BFS its shortest-unweighted-path behavior.

Question 10: Applied Judgment​

You need the fewest clicks between two connected pages in a small site map. What model and search should you try first?

Answer: Model the pages as a graph and try breadth-first search, because the goal is the shortest path in an unweighted connection map.

Self-Assessment​

  • 90%+ correct: ready to carry this intuition into Module 2
  • 70-89% correct: revisit the weak concept pages and redo one practice page
  • <70% correct: retrace one search example, one recursion example, and one graph example by hand before moving on

Readiness Check​

  • I can explain why sorted order matters for binary search
  • I can compare growth classes without talking only about clock time
  • I can choose a data shape by operation, not by buzzword
  • I can identify both the base case and recursive case
  • I can explain why BFS uses a queue and a visited rule