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Sparse Arrays

If you know that your matrices will stay nearly empty, then make them sparse.

% comparison of sparse vs full matrices
% Create sparse and full versions of the same matrix.
% Note that the density is 0.05. The break-even point
% for this operation seems to be about 0.25.
S = sprandn(60,60,0.05);
F = full(S);
% Compare speed.
disp('Sparse')
t0=cputime;
B = S * S;
cputime-t0
disp('Full')
t0=cputime;
C = F * F;
cputime-t0

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