What are the applications of sparse arrays?

What are the applications of sparse arrays?

Sparse arrays are used in various fields like computer graphics, machine learning, and scientific computing to efficiently store and process data.

Can you give me an example of how they are used in machine learning?

In machine learning, sparse arrays are often used to represent high-dimensional data, such as text data in natural language processing, where most features are zero.

What advantages do sparse arrays have over regular arrays?

Sparse arrays save memory and improve performance by only storing non-zero elements, making them ideal for large datasets with many zeros.

Are there any specific algorithms that benefit from using sparse arrays?

Yes, algorithms like gradient descent and certain matrix factorization techniques benefit significantly from sparse representations.