Java: Upcasting and Dynamic Dispatch

The actual type of the object in memory. Frame the concept in practical terms so you can explain it during interview discussion.

The runtime type refers to the actual class of the object that the reference points to at runtime. This affects which method implementations are executed. For instance, if a `Product` reference is assigned a `Book` object, the runtime type is `Book`. Thus, any overridden methods in `Book` will be executed when invoked through this reference.