Data Structure

You've probably heard about this topic many times, because let's face it it's an essential field in computing but what does it actually mean ? Why is it so important ? Why can't we have our date represented in computers the same way we represent it in our human lives ?

Data structures is a particular way of organizing data in a computer so that it can be used efficiently. Data structures can implement one or more particular abstract data types (ADT), which specify the operations that can be performed on a data structure and the computational complexity of those operations. 

What are some data structures ?

A- Simple data structures which include: 
   1- Arrays( [] ):a systematic arrangement of similar objects, usually in rows and columns.

B -Compound data structures which include:

     A- Linear : In linear data structures, values are arranged in linear fashion.          Examples of linear data structures include:          1-Queue: a collection in which the entities in the collection are kept in order and the    principal (or only) operations on the collection are the addition of entities ,and removal of entities.        2-Linked list: is a linear collection of data elements, called nodes, each pointing to the next node by means of a pointer
        3-Stack: an abstract data type that serves as a collection of elements.

    B-Non-linear:in linear data structures, values are arranged not arranged in order         1-Tree: it simulates a hierarchical tree structure, with a root value and subtrees of children with a parent node, represented as a set of linked nodes.         2-Graph:is an abstract data type that is meant to implement the undirected graph and directed graph concepts from mathematics.

Why is it essential for computers to have a different structure for data values and types ?

Data structure is a particular way of storing and organizing information in a computer so that it can be retrieved and used most productively. Different kinds of data structures are meant for different kinds of applications, and some are highly specialized to specific tasks.Without,data structures computers wouldn't be able to do anything,because search engines like Google,or intelligent assistants like Siri wouldn't be able to organize data and sort them in an efficient way that would allow the computers to do all the computing needed.

References:

1-http://www.tutorsonnet.com/images/datastructures.jpg

2-http://scanftree.com/Data_Structure/pic.png