A method to determine an extreme value of a plurality of data candidates includes storing each data candidate of a plurality of data candidates in a separate column of an associative memory, initializing a row of marker bits by setting each marker bit to a value of 1, computing a subsequent row of marker bits by performing in parallel a Boolean AND operation between a previous row of marker bits and a row of bits of the data candidates, starting with the row of most significant bits of the data candidates, performing a Boolean OR operation between the marker bits in the subsequent row of marker bits to generate a subsequent RSP value, identifying the extreme value from among the plurality of data candidates when there is only one marker bit having a value of 1 in the subsequent row of marker bits coinciding with when said subsequent RSP value is a 1, and if the identifying is false, repeating the computing on a row of next most significant bits, performing and identifying until the identifying is true.