Hashing is a great strategy for storing and searching information, especially where speed is a priority. In the hashing approach, the key is converted by some hashing function into an integer that is used as an index into a hash table. Different keys may be hashed into the same index, causing collisions. The performance and space requirements for a hash table vary depending on the implementation and collision resolution method. In the best case, a hash table provides O(1) access to data, but the performance deteriorates with a lot of collisions. In the lab assignment for this lesson, students will implement a hash coded data storage scheme and determine its efficiency.