Explain BFS and DFS — when would you use each in a real application?

BFS (shortest path guaranteed): Queue, level-by-level. DFS (any path): Stack/recursion, go deep.

function bfs(graph, start, target) {
  const queue = [start], visited = new Set([start]);
  while (queue.length) {
    const node = queue.shift();
    if (node === target) return true;
    for (const n of graph[node]) if (!visited.has(n)) { visited.add(n); queue.push(n); }
  }
}

LinkedIn connections: BFS — explores level by level, first match = shortest path.

Use	BFS	DFS
Shortest path	✅	❌
Cycle detection	✅	✅
Topological sort	❌	✅