Data Structures Behind Social Media: News Feeds, Friend Recommendations, and More
In today’s digital age, social media platforms are a massive part of our daily lives, offering personalized feeds, friend recommendations, and targeted content at every scroll. But behind the scenes, these platforms rely heavily on advanced data structures and algorithms to make the magic happen. This blog will explore the data structures powering some of the core features on social media platforms, like news feeds, friend recommendations, and more. 1. News Feeds: Priority Queues and Heaps One of the most popular features on social media platforms is the personalized news feed. Every time you open an app like Facebook or Twitter, you’re greeted with a feed full of posts tailored specifically to you. But with millions of active users and tons of content generated every second, how do these platforms determine what posts to show you first? · Priority Queues: Social media platforms often use priority queues to rank content. In a priority queue, each item is associated with a priority l...