human
Can you help me understand the difference between binary search and linear search?
assistant
Binary search is an algorithm used to quickly locate a specific item in a sorted list by repeatedly dividing the search interval in half. It starts by comparing the target item to the middle element of the array. If the target is equal to the middle element, the search is complete. If not, the algorithm determines which half of the array contains the target and does the same comparison in it, and so on. Linear search, on the other hand, is an algorithm for searching through an array or list. It checks each element of the list sequentially until a match is found or the whole list has been searched.