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Re: select a range of elements from a nested list

  • To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
  • Subject: [mg5437] Re: select a range of elements from a nested list
  • From: "Brian J. Albright" <albright at physics.ucla.edu>
  • Date: Sat, 7 Dec 1996 00:26:12 -0500
  • Organization: UCLA Department of Physics and Astronomy
  • Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com

Oliver Schurr wrote:
> 
> Hi MathGroup
> 
> Say you have a nested list like that {{x1,y1},{x2,y2},{x3,y3},...{xn,yn}}
> basically containing X and Y values for a XY plot in each element. The X
> values span a range from say 0 to 0.4 and you ONLY want to select the
> elements (x,y values) from the list for which the x value spans say 0 to
> 0.3. BUT you don't want to COUNT the elements (visually on the screen) and
> figure out the position at which the x value is just greater than 0.3 and
> then subtract 1 from this position.
> 
> I still want do define the list by using
> 
> Table[list[[x,1]],list[[x,2]],{x, 1, ZZZ}]
> 
> here ZZZ means the number for which the x value <= 0.3, this number needs
> to be found by MATHEMATICA!
> 
> I like to know if there is a general procedure to select elements from a
> nested list based on the values of one member of the elements of that
> nested list.
> 
> I hope I made myself clear enough to you all.
> 
> Thanks a lot.
> 
> Oliver Schurr
> Department of Chemistry
> Georgetown University
> Washington, DC 20057

Hi Oliver.

Ick.  Don't build your new list element-by-element.  Instead, use the
Cases function.  E.g.: 

Input:
Output:

This is much more elegant and executes faster than building your list
one element at a time.  Additionally, it works on unsorted data.  If for
some twisted reason you want to stick with the Table format, you can do
the following:

Input:
0.3 ] // Length} ]

Output:


Timings:

Input:
Output:

Input:	
/; x <= 0.3 ] // Length} ]; ]

Output:


I hope this helps.

-Brian


-------------------------------------------|----------------------------
Brian J. Albright                          | 
Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA  |  Um, yeah.  Uh....  Oh gee.
albright at physics.ucla.edu                  |   
http://bohm.physics.ucla.edu/~albright     |  [.signature stage fright]
-------------------------------------------|----------------------------


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