Computer Science Concepts

Understanding Computer Science Fundamentals for Developers Understanding computer science fundamentals helps developers reason about data, time, and trade-offs across many languages and frameworks. This article outlines key concepts and practical tips you can apply in daily work. Core concepts Data structures: arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, and hash tables organize data. Pick a structure by how you will access, insert, or search items. For example, a hash table makes lookups fast, while a tree supports ordered data. ...

Foundations of Programming: Algorithms and Data Structures In programming, two ideas live at the heart of problem solving: algorithms describe how to solve a task, and data structures describe how to store and access information. Together they influence speed, memory use, and the reliability of software. Understanding algorithms An algorithm is a step-by-step plan to reach a goal. It helps you reason about what happens as input grows. For example, a linear search checks items one by one, with time growing in proportion to the list length. A binary search cuts the problem size in half each time, but it needs sorted data. When you compare options, you should consider time complexity (how the running time grows) and sometimes space complexity (how much memory is needed). Simple ideas often perform well in practice. ...