Q64.Marks: +2.0UGC NET Paper 2: Computer Science 7th Dec 2023 Shift 2
Which data structure is typically used to implement hash table ?
1.Linked list
2.Array✓ Correct
3.Binary Tree
4.Stack
Solution
The correct answer is Array
Key Points
Array:
Arrays store a fixed-size sequential collection of elements of the same type.
They are used for hash table implementations because you can directly access the data if the index is known, which aligns with the key-value nature of hash tables.
The index becomes the hashed key, allowing for fast direct access.
Additional Information
Linked List:
A linked list is a linear data structure where each element is a separate object, called a 'node.' Each node contains a pointer to the next node along with the data. Linked lists are typically leveraged in stacks, queues, and even within hash tables to handle collisions (with separate chaining for instance), however, they are not usually used to implement the hash table itself.
Binary Tree:
A binary tree is a tree data structure in which each node can have a maximum of two children, referred to as the left child and the right child. It's best suited for binary search tree or heap data structures, used for operations like sorting and searching, but it's not typically used for implementing hash tables.
Stack:
A stack is a LIFO (Last In First Out) data structure. It allows operations at one end which is the top of the stack. It's used to reverse a data set, in function call implementations, and in algorithms like depth-first search. However, stacks are not typically used to implement hash tables, because they lack the direct access nature that hash tables offer.
