How do R Vectors differ from R Lists?

a) Vectors store elements of the same type, while lists can store elements of different types

b) Vectors are always numeric, while lists are always character data

c) Vectors are one-dimensional, while lists are two-dimensional

d) Vectors are used for mathematical operations, while lists are for data frames

Answer:

a) Vectors store elements of the same type, while lists can store elements of different types

Explanation:

The primary difference between R vectors and R lists is that vectors store elements of the same type, such as all numeric values, all character strings, or all logical values. In contrast, lists are more flexible and can store elements of different types, such as numbers, strings, and even other lists or data frames.

# Example of a vector
numeric_vector <- c(1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

# Example of a list
mixed_list <- list(1, "apple", TRUE, c(1, 2, 3))

# Printing the vector and list
print(numeric_vector)  # Output: 1 2 3 4 5
print(mixed_list)      # Output: 1, "apple", TRUE, 1 2 3

In this example, the vector numeric_vector contains only numeric values, while the list mixed_list contains different types of elements, including a number, a string, a logical value, and a numeric vector. This flexibility makes lists particularly useful for handling complex data structures in R.