Design Efficient Data Structure for Median Retrieval
Company: Amazon
Role: Data Scientist
Category: Coding & Algorithms
Difficulty: Medium
Interview Round: Technical Screen
##### Scenario
Senior problem-solving round assessing algorithmic thinking under time pressure.
##### Question
Design a data structure that supports inserting integers from an endless stream and returning the median in O(log n) per insertion and O(
1) per query. Provide code and complexity analysis.
##### Hints
Two heaps approach; keep sizes balanced; median at roots.
Quick Answer: This question evaluates understanding of streaming data structures, median maintenance, and algorithmic complexity in the Coding & Algorithms domain by requiring efficient insertions (O(log n)) and constant-time median queries (O(1)).
