Hints when to Use Binary Search in an interview.. - When an array or matrix is sorted or partially sorted that might be a sign that you want to use binary search - When the O(N) solution is obvious or the interviewer is looking for faster than O(N). Key Takeaways: - Search Condition can be determined without comparing to the element's neighbors …

Binary Search Template.py

def binarySearch(nums, target):
    """
    :type nums: List[int]
    :type target: int
    :rtype: int
    """
    if len(nums) == 0:
        return -1

    lo, hi= 0, len(nums) - 1
    while lo <= hi:
        mid = (lo + hi) // 2
        if nums[mid] == target:
            return mid
        elif nums[mid] < target:
            lo = mid + 1
        else:
            hi = mid - 1

    # End Condition: lo > hi
    return -1