Heap (data Structure)
In computer science, a heap is a specialized Tree (data structure), tree-based data structure which is essentially an Binary_tree#Types_of_binary_trees, almost complete tree that satisfies the heap property: in a ''max heap'', for any given Node (computer science), node C, if P is a parent node of C, then the ''key'' (the ''value'') of P is greater than or equal to the key of C. In a ''min heap'', the key of P is less than or equal to the key of C. The node at the "top" of the heap (with no parents) is called the ''root'' node. The heap is one maximally efficient implementation of an abstract data type called a priority queue, and in fact, priority queues are often referred to as "heaps", regardless of how they may be implemented. In a heap, the highest (or lowest) priority element is always stored at the root. However, a heap is not a sorted structure; it can be regarded as being partially ordered. A heap is a useful data structure when it is necessary to repeatedly remove the ob ...
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