What is the difference between a shallow copy and a deep copy?

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Shallow Copy Creates a new object, but the contents (elements or references inside the object) are not copied recursively.The new object’s fields reference the same nested objects as the original.So changes to nested mutable objects inside either the original or the copy will affect both. Example: Notice how modifying the nested list inside shallow also changed it in original. Deep Copy Creates a new object and recursively copies all objects found inside it.The copy is completely independent of the original.Changes to any part of the copy won’t affect the original. Example: Here, the nested list inside deep is a completely separate copy, so modifying it does not change original. Summary: Feature Shallow Copy Deep Copy Copies object Yes Yes Copies nested objects No (references shared) Yes (recursively copies nested objs) Changes to nested mutable objects Reflect in both copies Independent Use case When nested objects are immutable or shared intentionally When you need fully independent copy

Feature	Shallow Copy	Deep Copy
Copies object	Yes	Yes
Copies nested objects	No (references shared)	Yes (recursively copies nested objs)
Changes to nested mutable objects	Reflect in both copies	Independent
Use case	When nested objects are immutable or shared intentionally	When you need fully independent copy

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What is the difference between a shallow copy and a deep copy?

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Shallow Copy

Deep Copy

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