• expr@programming.dev
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          6 months ago

          It’s not a terrible name, since it’s derived from the mathematical construct of vectors as n-tuples. In the case of vectors in programming, n relates to the size of the underlying array, and the tuple consists of the elements of the vector.

        • ulterno@lemmy.kde.social
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          3
          ·
          6 months ago

          I myself was confused, when I first saw what a vector did in practice.
          Really bad name.

          But then I didn’t take Comp Sci.

    • Eatspancakes84@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      5
      ·
      6 months ago

      The only correct answer for a 101 introduction. It’s an incredible powerful intuition even in contexts where vectors are seemingly used as a list of numbers.

    • SorryQuick@lemmy.ca
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      6 months ago

      You can also define a vector by the equivalent “sides of the right triangle”. In 2D, the x,y coordinates. In computer science, vectors are n-tuples, so they represent a math/physics vector but in n-dimensions.

    • solarbabies@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      6 months ago

      Yes, and as linear algebra teaches, to convert a vector from direction and magnitude to a list of numbers (components), follow these steps:

      1. Let the magnitude of the vector be represented by the symbol |A| or A.
      2. Let the direction of the vector be represented by the angle θ, which is measured counterclockwise from the positive x-axis.
      3. The x-component of the vector is given by: Ax = |A| cos(θ)
      4. The y-component of the vector is given by: Ay = |A| sin(θ)

      The vector can now be represented as a list of numbers: A = (Ax, Ay)

      For example, if a vector has a magnitude of 5 units and a direction of 30° counterclockwise from the positive x-axis, its components would be:

      Ax = 5 cos(30°) ≈ 4.33 units Ay = 5 sin(30°) ≈ 2.50 units

      The vector can now be written as A = (4.33, 2.50)

      source