CBSE Class 12 Computer Science Question 72 of 101

Functions — Question 40

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Question 36

Compare and contrast the use of iteration and recursion in terms of memory space and speed.

Answer
  1. Memory Space: — Iterative solutions require less memory space because they reuse the same variables and memory locations for each iteration of the loop. Memory allocation is minimal, leading to efficient memory usage. On the other hand, recursive solutions require more memory space compared to iteration. This is because recursion involves creating a new stack for each recursive call, storing local variables and function calls. As a result, recursion can lead to higher memory consumption.
  2. Speed: — Iterative solutions are faster in terms of execution speed compared to recursion. Since iteration involves a simple loop structure that directly manipulates variables, it results in faster execution times. On the other hand, recursive solutions are slower than their iterative counterparts due to the overhead of function calls and stack manipulation.