What is Vectorization in R?
a) A technique for applying operations directly to entire vectors instead of using loops
b) A method for converting data into vector format
c) A way to handle missing data in vectors
d) A technique for creating high-dimensional arrays
Answer:
a) A technique for applying operations directly to entire vectors instead of using loops
Explanation:
Vectorization in R is a technique that allows you to apply operations directly to entire vectors, matrices, or arrays, without the need for explicit loops. This approach takes advantage of R’s optimized internal functions, leading to more concise, efficient, and readable code. Vectorized operations are typically faster than their loop-based counterparts because they are implemented in low-level languages like C.
# Example of vectorized operations
vector <- c(1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
# Adding 10 to each element in the vector
result <- vector + 10
print(result) # Outputs: 11 12 13 14 15In this example, the operation vector + 10 is applied directly to the entire vector, adding 10 to each element. This is much more efficient than using a loop to achieve the same result. Vectorization is a key feature of R that enables efficient data manipulation and computation.