What are the differences between stacks and queues in Python?

What are the differences between stacks and queues in Python?

Stacks and queues are both data structures in Python's collections module. A stack follows Last In First Out (LIFO) principle, while a queue follows First In First Out (FIFO).

Can you give me examples of how to implement both in Python?

Sure! You can use list for a stack and collections.deque for a queue. For a stack: stack = [] and stack.append(item) to add, stack.pop() to remove. For a queue: from collections import deque; queue = deque() and queue.append(item) to add, queue.popleft() to remove.

What are some use cases for stacks and queues?

Stacks are often used in function calls and backtracking algorithms, while queues are used in scheduling tasks and breadth-first search algorithms.

Are there any performance differences between them?

Yes, stacks and queues have different performance characteristics based on their implementations. Lists can be inefficient for queues due to O(n) complexity for removing items, while deque provides O(1) complexity for both adding and removing items.