The scientific community works primarily with array (or "tensor") data, using tools like numpy, xarray, and zarr. People familiar with modern relational database tools such as DuckDB and Parquet often ask why can't we just use those? This article explains why: it's massively inefficient to use tabular tools on array data, and demonstrates with a benchmark showing a 10x difference in query speed.
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The scientific community works primarily with array (or "tensor") data, using tools like numpy, xarray, and zarr. People familiar with modern relational database tools such as DuckDB and Parquet often ask why can't we just use those? This article explains why: it's massively inefficient to use tabular tools on array data, and demonstrates with a benchmark showing a 10x difference in query speed.