What is the purpose of the modulo operator?

The purpose of the modulo operator is to find the remainder of a division operation. This operator is commonly used in programming and mathematics to determine how much is left over after dividing one number by another. For instance, if you divide 10 by 3, the result is 3 with a remainder of 1. Therefore, using the modulo operator (often represented as % in many programming languages) would yield a result of 1.

This operator is particularly useful in various scenarios, such as determining whether a number is even or odd (by checking if the number mod 2 equals 0), cycling through array indices, or implementing certain algorithms where remainder calculations are essential. Understanding the functionality of the modulo operator is critical in programming as it enables developers to handle various logic and computational tasks effectively.