Databricks Data Engineer Associate Question 174
Select 3A data engineer is working with a column of arrays in a Delta table containing customer purchase history. The column purchases contains arrays of product IDs purchased by each customer. The engineer wants to determine the total number of unique products purchased across all customers. Which of the following demonstrates the main benefits of using array functions in this scenario?
- A
Array functions allow direct manipulation of array data without the need for data flattening.
- B
Using array functions simplifies the code by providing built-in operations like
array_distinctto find unique values. - C
Array functions can automatically optimize data storage for array columns in Delta tables.
- D
Array functions improve performance by minimizing the need for joins or cross joins in handling array data.
- E
Using array functions ensures the data automatically scales horizontally across multiple nodes in a cluster.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answers: A, B, D
Explanation
Array functions in Databricks simplify array manipulations by providing built-in operations like array_distinct, enabling efficient data processing without the need for complex transformations such as flattening or joins. This improves performance and code readability, making them highly beneficial in scenarios involving array data.
- A. Correct.
Correct: Array functions allow operations directly on arrays, removing the need for complex transformations like flattening.
- B. Correct.
Correct: Built-in array functions like
array_distincteliminate the need for custom logic, simplifying the code and improving maintainability. - C. Incorrect.
Incorrect: Array functions do not inherently optimize data storage for array columns; storage optimization is independent of array functions.
- D. Correct.
Correct: By avoiding joins or cross joins, array functions improve performance when working with array data.
- E. Incorrect.
Incorrect: Array functions do not directly impact horizontal scaling, which is handled by the underlying cluster infrastructure and distributed processing.