base case for recursive binary search

[median bramble]

What would the base case be for a binary search function if the method signature is as follows:

public int binarySearch(int[] list, int target, int low, int high)

[vagrant rivet]

<@&987246717831381062> please have a look, thanks.

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TJ-Bot

What would the base case be for a binary search function if the method signature is as follows: public int binarySearch(int[] list, int target, int low, int high)

The base case for a recursive binary search function with the given method signature would be when the value of 'low' is greater than 'high'. This means that the specified range within which to search for the target value has been exhausted and the target value is not found in the list. In this case, the function should return -1 to indicate that the target value is not present in the list within the specified range.

Here is an example of how this base case could be implemented in a recursive binary search function:

public int binarySearch(int[] list, int target, int low, int high) {
    if (low > high) {
        return -1; // base case: target not found within specified range
    }

    // continue with binary search logic
}

In this implementation, the function checks if 'low' is greater than 'high' and returns -1 if true. This signifies that the target value is not present in the list within the specified range. The binary search logic can then proceed or terminate based on this base case check.

- AI generated response

[vale ore]

best case is O(1)

why would you try to dev against best case though?

you should dev against worst case, which would be O(log n)

[halcyon vortex]

He's looking for the base case or bailout condition for a recursive method.

[vale ore]

oh, my bad

misread

have you looked at examples online for base cases when it comes to binary searches?

[median bramble]

Yeah I got it, I was just having a hard time thinking about when I would be able to return -1