Data Structures and Algorithms
with Object-Oriented Design Patterns in Java 
A binary heap is a heap-ordered binary tree which has a very special shape called a complete tree. As a result of its special shape, a binary heap can be implemented using an array as the underlying foundational data structure. Array subscript calculations are used to find the parent and the children of a given node in the tree. And since an array is used, the storage overhead associated with the subtree fields contained in the nodes of the trees is eliminated.
Copyright © 1998 by Bruno R. Preiss, P.Eng. All rights reserved.