PCEP Computer Programming and Python Fundamentals Practice Question

Exhibit

Refer to the exhibit.

{
  "name": "config",
  "version": 2,
  "settings": {
    "debug": true,
    "port": 8080
  }
}

The exhibit shows a JSON configuration. Which Python data structure is best suited to represent this configuration?

Answer choices

Why each option matters

Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.

Correct answer & explanation

✓

Dictionary

JSON objects map directly to Python dictionaries. Option B (Tuple) is wrong because tuples are immutable and lack key-value mapping. Option C (String) is wrong because a string would lose all structure, making access by key impossible. Option D (List) is wrong because lists are ordered sequences accessed by index, not by key-value pairs.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✓
Dictionary
Why this is correct
A dictionary maps JSON objects directly: keys become strings and values become nested dictionaries, lists or scalars. This mirrors the exhibit's key-value pairs, satisfying the requirement to represent the configuration faithfully while allowing lookup by key rather than by positional index.
✗
Tuple
Why it's wrong here
A tuple is immutable, so it cannot represent a configuration whose keys and values may need updating. It tempts because tuples hold heterogeneous, ordered items and suit fixed records, but JSON objects map to mutable dictionaries with named keys, which tuples cannot express.
✗
String
Why it's wrong here
A string stores raw text and offers no key-based lookup, so nested configuration values cannot be accessed directly. It tempts because JSON is transmitted as text, but parsing converts it into a dictionary; keeping it as a string defeats the purpose of representing structured data.
✗
List
Why it's wrong here
A list is an ordered sequence indexed by position, so it cannot map configuration keys to values. It tempts because lists hold nested structures and preserve order, but JSON objects are unordered key-value mappings, which Python represents with a dictionary rather than a list.

Go deeper

PCEP Computer Programming and Python Fundamentals Practice Question

Exhibit

Why each option matters

Option-by-option breakdown

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