Heap (data structure)

A heap is a specialized tree-based data structure used to efficiently manage prioritized data. It maintains a specific order: in a max-heap, each parent is greater than or equal to its children, while in a min-heap, each parent is less than or equal to its children. This structure enables quick access to the highest or lowest element. Heaps are commonly used in algorithms like priority queues and heapsort, as they allow fast insertion, deletion, and retrieval of the top-priority item, making data processing more efficient.