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A data structure is information that is organized in a certain way in memory in order to access it more efficiently. The data structure makes it easier to access and modify data.
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There are many types of data structures. Some examples are stacks, lists, arrays, hash tables, queues, and trees. There is not a data structure that is efficient for every purpose, so there are many different types to use for many different problems or purposes. A data structure should be chosen so that it can perform many types of operations while using little memory and execution time. An example of a good data structure fit would be using a tree-type data structure for use with a database. Of course there may be many data structures that can be used for a specific problem. The choice in these cases is mostly made by preference of the programmer or designer.
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Sperber, M. (2017). Data Structure. In: Shekhar, S., Xiong, H., Zhou, X. (eds) Encyclopedia of GIS. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17885-1_251
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17885-1_251
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