Given an array of integers for each element determine whether that element occurs earlier

given an array of integers for each element determine whether that element occurs earlier

How to Determine if an Element Occurs Earlier in an Array

Answer: To determine whether each element in an array of integers has occurred earlier, you can follow these steps:

  1. Initialize a Set for Tracking: Use a set to keep track of the elements you have already seen as you iterate through the array.

  2. Iterate Through the Array: Loop through each element in the array.

  3. Check If the Element Is in the Set:

    • If the element is in the set, it means it has appeared before.
    • If the element is not in the set, it is the first time you are encountering this element.
  4. Update the Set: Add the current element to the set if it’s not already there.

Here is some example code in Python to illustrate these steps:

def check_elements(arr):
    seen_elements = set()
    result = []
    
    for elem in arr:
        if elem in seen_elements:
            result.append(True)  # This element has occurred earlier
        else:
            result.append(False)  # This is the first occurrence of the element
            seen_elements.add(elem)
    
    return result

# Example usage
array = [3, 5, 3, 2, 6, 5]
print(check_elements(array))  # Output: [False, False, True, False, False, True]

Explanation:

  • The seen_elements set keeps track of all elements encountered so far.
  • As you iterate through array, check if elem is in seen_elements.
  • Append True to result if elem is found in the set, indicating it has appeared earlier; otherwise, append False.

Summary: This approach efficiently determines whether each element in an array appears earlier by utilizing a set to track previously seen elements, ensuring each lookup and insertion is done in constant average time.