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How does the use of generics implement the concept of polymorphism in programming languages?

sobes.tech AI

Answer from AI

Generics allow creating functions, classes, and methods that work with different data types while maintaining type safety. This implements the concept of polymorphism, as the same code can handle objects of different types.

Unlike classical polymorphism through inheritance and virtual methods, generics provide type-level polymorphism during compilation, which enhances performance and safety.

Example in Dart (Flutter):

class Box<T> {
  T value;
  Box(this.value);

  void show() {
    print('Value: $value');
  }
}

void main() {
  var intBox = Box<int>(123);
  var stringBox = Box<String>('Hello');

  intBox.show();      // Value: 123
  stringBox.show();   // Value: Hello
}

Here, the Box class works with any type T, demonstrating polymorphism through generics.

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