Arrays and Objects

Arrays

An array is an ordered collection of values. Arrays in JavaScript can hold any type of data — strings, numbers, booleans, objects, even other arrays. They are zero-indexed, meaning the first element is at position 0.

// Creating arrays
const fruits = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"];
const numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
const mixed = ["hello", 42, true, null, [1, 2]];
const empty = [];

// Accessing elements (0-indexed)
console.log(fruits[0]);  // "apple"
console.log(fruits[1]);  // "banana"
console.log(fruits[2]);  // "cherry"
console.log(fruits[-1]); // undefined (use .at(-1) instead)
console.log(fruits.at(-1)); // "cherry" (last element)

// Array length
console.log(fruits.length); // 3

// Modifying elements
fruits[1] = "blueberry";
console.log(fruits); // ["apple", "blueberry", "cherry"]

// Checking if something is an array
console.log(Array.isArray(fruits));  // true
console.log(Array.isArray("hello")); // false

Array Methods

Adding and Removing Elements

const colors = ["red", "green", "blue"];

// push — add to the end
colors.push("yellow");
console.log(colors); // ["red", "green", "blue", "yellow"]

// pop — remove from the end
const last = colors.pop();
console.log(last);   // "yellow"
console.log(colors); // ["red", "green", "blue"]

// unshift — add to the beginning
colors.unshift("purple");
console.log(colors); // ["purple", "red", "green", "blue"]

// shift — remove from the beginning
const first = colors.shift();
console.log(first);  // "purple"
console.log(colors); // ["red", "green", "blue"]

// splice — add/remove at any position
// splice(startIndex, deleteCount, ...itemsToAdd)
colors.splice(1, 0, "orange"); // insert "orange" at index 1
console.log(colors); // ["red", "orange", "green", "blue"]

colors.splice(2, 1); // remove 1 element at index 2
console.log(colors); // ["red", "orange", "blue"]

colors.splice(1, 1, "yellow", "pink"); // replace 1 element with 2
console.log(colors); // ["red", "yellow", "pink", "blue"]

map, filter, and reduce

const numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];

// map — transform each element, return new array
const doubled = numbers.map(n => n * 2);
console.log(doubled);  // [2, 4, 6, 8, 10]
console.log(numbers);  // [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] — original unchanged

const names = ["alice", "bob", "charlie"];
const capitalized = names.map(name => name.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + name.slice(1));
console.log(capitalized); // ["Alice", "Bob", "Charlie"]

// filter — keep elements that pass a test, return new array
const evens = numbers.filter(n => n % 2 === 0);
console.log(evens); // [2, 4]

const longNames = names.filter(name => name.length > 3);
console.log(longNames); // ["alice", "charlie"]

// reduce — combine all elements into a single value
const sum = numbers.reduce((accumulator, current) => accumulator + current, 0);
console.log(sum); // 15

// reduce to find the maximum
const max = numbers.reduce((max, n) => n > max ? n : max, numbers[0]);
console.log(max); // 5

// Chaining methods together
const result = numbers
    .filter(n => n % 2 !== 0)  // [1, 3, 5]
    .map(n => n * 10)          // [10, 30, 50]
    .reduce((sum, n) => sum + n, 0); // 90
console.log(result); // 90

find, includes, and indexOf

const users = [
    { name: "Alice", age: 25 },
    { name: "Bob", age: 30 },
    { name: "Charlie", age: 35 }
];

// find — get the first element that matches
const bob = users.find(user => user.name === "Bob");
console.log(bob); // { name: "Bob", age: 30 }

// findIndex — get the index of the first match
const bobIndex = users.findIndex(user => user.name === "Bob");
console.log(bobIndex); // 1

// includes — check if a value exists (simple values only)
const fruits = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"];
console.log(fruits.includes("banana")); // true
console.log(fruits.includes("grape"));  // false

// indexOf — get the index of a value (-1 if not found)
console.log(fruits.indexOf("cherry")); // 2
console.log(fruits.indexOf("grape"));  // -1

// some — does at least one element pass the test?
const hasAdult = users.some(user => user.age >= 18);
console.log(hasAdult); // true

// every — do ALL elements pass the test?
const allAdults = users.every(user => user.age >= 18);
console.log(allAdults); // true

Other Useful Array Methods

// sort — sorts in place (mutates the array)
const nums = [3, 1, 4, 1, 5, 9];
nums.sort((a, b) => a - b); // ascending
console.log(nums); // [1, 1, 3, 4, 5, 9]

nums.sort((a, b) => b - a); // descending
console.log(nums); // [9, 5, 4, 3, 1, 1]

// reverse — reverses in place
const letters = ["a", "b", "c"];
letters.reverse();
console.log(letters); // ["c", "b", "a"]

// join — combine into a string
const words = ["Hello", "World"];
console.log(words.join(" ")); // "Hello World"
console.log(words.join("-")); // "Hello-World"

// slice — extract a portion (does NOT mutate)
const colors = ["red", "orange", "yellow", "green", "blue"];
console.log(colors.slice(1, 3));  // ["orange", "yellow"]
console.log(colors.slice(-2));    // ["green", "blue"]

// flat — flatten nested arrays
const nested = [1, [2, 3], [4, [5, 6]]];
console.log(nested.flat());    // [1, 2, 3, 4, [5, 6]]
console.log(nested.flat(2));   // [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]  (depth 2)

Destructuring Arrays

Destructuring lets you unpack values from arrays into individual variables in a single statement:

// Basic array destructuring
const colors = ["red", "green", "blue"];
const [first, second, third] = colors;
console.log(first);  // "red"
console.log(second); // "green"
console.log(third);  // "blue"

// Skip elements with empty slots
const [, , thirdOnly] = colors;
console.log(thirdOnly); // "blue"

// Default values
const [a, b, c, d = "yellow"] = colors;
console.log(d); // "yellow" (default, since colors[3] is undefined)

// Rest pattern — collect remaining elements
const [head, ...tail] = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
console.log(head); // 1
console.log(tail); // [2, 3, 4, 5]

// Swapping variables (no temp variable needed!)
let x = 1;
let y = 2;
[x, y] = [y, x];
console.log(x); // 2
console.log(y); // 1

// Destructuring function return values
function getCoordinates() {
    return [40.7128, -74.0060];
}

const [lat, lng] = getCoordinates();
console.log(`Latitude: ${lat}, Longitude: ${lng}`);

Objects

Objects are collections of key-value pairs. They are JavaScript's most versatile data structure — similar to Python's dictionaries but with additional capabilities.

// Creating objects
const user = {
    name: "Alice",
    age: 25,
    email: "alice@example.com",
    isAdmin: false
};

// Accessing properties — dot notation
console.log(user.name);  // "Alice"
console.log(user.age);   // 25

// Accessing properties — bracket notation
console.log(user["email"]); // "alice@example.com"

// Bracket notation is required for:
const key = "name";
console.log(user[key]);   // "Alice" (dynamic key)

// Keys with special characters
const obj = { "full-name": "Alice Smith", "2fast": true };
console.log(obj["full-name"]); // "Alice Smith"

// Modifying properties
user.age = 26;
user.phone = "+1234567890"; // add new property
console.log(user);

// Removing properties
delete user.phone;
console.log(user.phone); // undefined

// Check if a property exists
console.log("name" in user);  // true
console.log("phone" in user); // false
console.log(user.hasOwnProperty("age")); // true

Shorthand Property Names

// When variable name matches the key, you can shorten it
const name = "Alice";
const age = 25;
const city = "London";

// Long form
const userLong = { name: name, age: age, city: city };

// Shorthand (same result)
const userShort = { name, age, city };
console.log(userShort); // { name: "Alice", age: 25, city: "London" }

Iterating Over Objects

const user = { name: "Alice", age: 25, city: "London" };

// Object.keys() — array of keys
console.log(Object.keys(user));   // ["name", "age", "city"]

// Object.values() — array of values
console.log(Object.values(user)); // ["Alice", 25, "London"]

// Object.entries() — array of [key, value] pairs
console.log(Object.entries(user));
// [["name", "Alice"], ["age", 25], ["city", "London"]]

// Looping with for...in
for (const key in user) {
    console.log(`${key}: ${user[key]}`);
}

// Looping with Object.entries() and for...of
for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(user)) {
    console.log(`${key}: ${value}`);
}

Object Methods

Objects can contain functions as values. When a function is a property of an object, it is called a method:

const calculator = {
    // Method shorthand (ES6)
    add(a, b) {
        return a + b;
    },

    subtract(a, b) {
        return a - b;
    },

    // Method using 'this' to access own properties
    history: [],

    calculate(a, op, b) {
        let result;
        if (op === "+") result = this.add(a, b);
        else if (op === "-") result = this.subtract(a, b);
        this.history.push(`${a} ${op} ${b} = ${result}`);
        return result;
    }
};

console.log(calculator.calculate(5, "+", 3)); // 8
console.log(calculator.calculate(10, "-", 4)); // 6
console.log(calculator.history);
// ["5 + 3 = 8", "10 - 4 = 6"]

// Object.assign — merge objects
const defaults = { theme: "dark", lang: "en", notifications: true };
const userPrefs = { theme: "light", lang: "fr" };
const settings = Object.assign({}, defaults, userPrefs);
console.log(settings);
// { theme: "light", lang: "fr", notifications: true }

// Object.freeze — make an object immutable
const config = Object.freeze({ apiUrl: "https://api.example.com", timeout: 5000 });
config.apiUrl = "changed"; // silently fails (or throws in strict mode)
console.log(config.apiUrl); // "https://api.example.com" — unchanged

Destructuring Objects

Object destructuring extracts properties into variables. It matches by property name, not position (unlike array destructuring):

const user = {
    name: "Alice",
    age: 25,
    email: "alice@example.com",
    address: {
        city: "London",
        country: "UK"
    }
};

// Basic destructuring
const { name, age, email } = user;
console.log(name);  // "Alice"
console.log(age);   // 25
console.log(email); // "alice@example.com"

// Rename variables
const { name: userName, age: userAge } = user;
console.log(userName); // "Alice"
console.log(userAge);  // 25

// Default values
const { name: n, role = "viewer" } = user;
console.log(n);    // "Alice"
console.log(role); // "viewer" (default, since user.role is undefined)

// Nested destructuring
const { address: { city, country } } = user;
console.log(city);    // "London"
console.log(country); // "UK"

// Destructuring in function parameters
function greetUser({ name, age }) {
    console.log(`Hello ${name}, you are ${age} years old.`);
}

greetUser(user); // "Hello Alice, you are 25 years old."

// With defaults in parameters
function createProfile({ name, role = "user", active = true } = {}) {
    return { name, role, active };
}

console.log(createProfile({ name: "Bob" }));
// { name: "Bob", role: "user", active: true }

Spread and Rest Operators

The ... syntax serves two purposes: spread (expanding) and rest (collecting). Which one it is depends on context.

Spread — Expanding Arrays

// Copy an array (shallow copy)
const original = [1, 2, 3];
const copy = [...original];
copy.push(4);
console.log(original); // [1, 2, 3] — unchanged
console.log(copy);     // [1, 2, 3, 4]

// Merge arrays
const front = [1, 2, 3];
const back = [4, 5, 6];
const combined = [...front, ...back];
console.log(combined); // [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

// Insert elements
const middle = [1, ...front, 99, ...back, 100];
console.log(middle); // [1, 1, 2, 3, 99, 4, 5, 6, 100]

// Spread a string into characters
const chars = [..."Hello"];
console.log(chars); // ["H", "e", "l", "l", "o"]

// Pass array elements as function arguments
const numbers = [5, 2, 8, 1, 9];
console.log(Math.max(...numbers)); // 9

Spread — Expanding Objects

// Copy an object (shallow copy)
const user = { name: "Alice", age: 25 };
const userCopy = { ...user };
userCopy.age = 26;
console.log(user.age);     // 25 — unchanged
console.log(userCopy.age); // 26

// Merge objects (later properties win)
const defaults = { theme: "dark", lang: "en", debug: false };
const overrides = { theme: "light", debug: true };
const config = { ...defaults, ...overrides };
console.log(config);
// { theme: "light", lang: "en", debug: true }

// Add/override properties
const updatedUser = { ...user, age: 26, email: "alice@example.com" };
console.log(updatedUser);
// { name: "Alice", age: 26, email: "alice@example.com" }

Rest — Collecting Remaining Elements

// Rest in array destructuring
const [first, second, ...rest] = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
console.log(first); // 1
console.log(second); // 2
console.log(rest);   // [3, 4, 5]

// Rest in object destructuring
const { name, ...otherProps } = { name: "Alice", age: 25, city: "London" };
console.log(name);       // "Alice"
console.log(otherProps); // { age: 25, city: "London" }

// Rest in function parameters
function logAll(first, ...others) {
    console.log(`First: ${first}`);
    console.log(`Others: ${others}`);
}
logAll("a", "b", "c", "d");
// "First: a"
// "Others: b,c,d"

JSON

JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is a text format for storing and exchanging data. It looks almost identical to JavaScript objects, but with stricter rules: keys must be double-quoted strings, and values cannot be functions, undefined, or symbols.

// JavaScript object
const user = {
    name: "Alice",
    age: 25,
    hobbies: ["reading", "coding"],
    address: {
        city: "London",
        country: "UK"
    }
};

// Convert object to JSON string
const jsonString = JSON.stringify(user);
console.log(jsonString);
// '{"name":"Alice","age":25,"hobbies":["reading","coding"],"address":{"city":"London","country":"UK"}}'

// Pretty-print with indentation
const pretty = JSON.stringify(user, null, 2);
console.log(pretty);
// {
//   "name": "Alice",
//   "age": 25,
//   "hobbies": [
//     "reading",
//     "coding"
//   ],
//   "address": {
//     "city": "London",
//     "country": "UK"
//   }
// }

// Parse JSON string back to object
const parsed = JSON.parse(jsonString);
console.log(parsed.name);         // "Alice"
console.log(parsed.hobbies[0]);   // "reading"
console.log(parsed.address.city); // "London"

Working with JSON and APIs

// JSON is the standard format for web APIs
// Here's a typical pattern for fetching JSON data:

// fetch("https://api.example.com/users")
//     .then(response => response.json())
//     .then(data => {
//         console.log(data);
//     });

// Deep clone an object using JSON (simple but effective)
const original = { a: 1, b: { c: 2 } };
const deepCopy = JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(original));
deepCopy.b.c = 99;
console.log(original.b.c); // 2 — original unaffected

// JSON limitations — these values are lost or converted:
const problematic = {
    func: function() {},  // lost (functions not supported)
    undef: undefined,     // lost
    date: new Date(),     // converted to string
    regex: /test/,        // converted to {}
    num: 42               // works fine
};

const roundTrip = JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(problematic));
console.log(roundTrip);
// { date: "2026-03-04T...", regex: {}, num: 42 }
// func and undef are gone

Now Do It Yourself: Five Steps

One small shopping list, handled five ways: reading an array, transforming the whole of it at once, describing a single item as an object, changing a copy without wrecking the original, and turning the result into text that a file or an API can carry. Every output below is exactly what Node printed.

const prices = [12.5, 4, 30, 7.25];
console.log(prices.length);
console.log(prices[0]);
console.log(prices[3]);
console.log(prices[4]);
console.log(prices.at(-1));

const prices = [12.5, 4, 30, 7.25];
const withTax = prices.map(p => p * 1.2);
console.log(withTax);
const big = prices.filter(p => p >= 10);
console.log(big);
const total = prices.reduce((sum, p) => sum + p, 0);
console.log(total);

const item = { name: "keyboard", price: 30, inStock: true };
console.log(item.name);
console.log(item["price"]);
console.log(item.colour);
console.log("item is " + item);
for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(item)) {
  console.log(key, "=", value);
}

const item = { name: "keyboard", price: 30, inStock: true };
const { name, price } = item;
console.log(name, price);
const discounted = { ...item, price: 24 };
console.log(discounted);
console.log(item);

const item = { name: "keyboard", price: 30, tags: ["usb", "wired"] };
const text = JSON.stringify(item);
console.log(text);
console.log(typeof text);
const back = JSON.parse(text);
console.log(back.tags[1]);
console.log(typeof back);

Summary

• Arrays are ordered, zero-indexed collections: ["a", "b", "c"]
• push/pop add/remove from end; unshift/shift add/remove from start
• map transforms, filter selects, reduce combines — learn these well
• find/includes/indexOf — search for elements in arrays
• Array destructuring: const [a, b] = array
• Objects are key-value pairs: { name: "Alice", age: 25 }
• Access with dot notation (obj.key) or brackets (obj["key"])
• Object destructuring: const { name, age } = obj
• Spread (...) expands arrays/objects; rest (...) collects remaining items
• JSON.stringify() and JSON.parse() convert between objects and JSON strings