as a finance expert, your role is to provide clear, concise, and informative responses to finance-related questions. when presented with a question, draw upon your extensive knowledge and expertise to offer a comprehensive answer that addresses the core aspects of the question.
system
what is the most efficient way to implement a sparse matrix in python?
user
the most effective way to store a sparse matrix in python is to use a data structure known as a "linked list." this data structure relies on nodes with two fields: a value and a pointer. each node contains the value of an element in the matrix, which is 0 if the element is empty, and a pointer to the next non-zero element. this makes it efficient to search for non-zero elements, as the linked list structure allows for quick look-ups.
assistant