Introduction to Python

CS 331: Data Structures and Algorithms

Michael Saelee <lee@iit.edu>
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Agenda
- language overview
- built-in types, operators and constructs
- functions, classes, and modules
- stdlib: I/O, testing, timing
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Not exhaustive!
- this is not a language course
- Python is a means to an end 

(writing data structures & algorithms)
- you are responsible for mastering the
language!
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Quick Note on Tools

- More info and access to course server
coming soon (accounts being set up)
- You can install Python 3.4 (download
from python.org) or visit python.org/
shell to follow along in class
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IDE recommendation
- We will not be using an official IDE
- Text editor (vim/emacs) + command
line interpreter will suffice
- If you want/need one, I recommend
PyCharm (from jetbrains.com)
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§Overview
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Python is …
interpreted,
dynamically-typed,
automatically memory-managed,
and supports procedural, object-oriented,
imperative and functional paradigms
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- Designed (mostly) by one man: Guido

van Rossum (aka “benevolent dictator”)
- A single reference implementation (CPython)
- Current version (3) not backwards-
compatible with previous (2), though
latter is still widely used
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PEP 20 -- The Zen of Python

Beautiful is better than ugly.

Explicit is better than implicit.
Simple is better than complex.
Complex is better than complicated.
Flat is better than nested.
Sparse is better than dense.
Readability counts.
Special cases aren't special enough to break the rules.
Although practicality beats purity.
Errors should never pass silently.
Unless explicitly silenced.
In the face of ambiguity, refuse the temptation to guess.
There should be one-- and preferably only one --obvious way to do it.
Although that way may not be obvious at first unless you're Dutch.
Now is better than never.
Although never is often better than *right* now.
If the implementation is hard to explain, it's a bad idea.
If the implementation is easy to explain, it may be a good idea.
Namespaces are one honking great idea -- let's do more of those!
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i.e., for (small-ish) programming problems,

there is usually an appropriate, idiomatic,
Pythonic way of coding a solution
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we’ll review plenty of Pythonic examples

in class that you can (and should!) emulate
in your own work
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§Types, Operators 

and Constructs
(that matter to us)
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Atomic types: int, float, bool

Compound types: str, list, tuple,

range, set, dict
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Boolean operators

Comparison operators
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Numeric operators
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“Operators” either invoke global functions

or methods on instances of built-in types
>>> 1 + 2
3
>>> (1).__add__(2)
3
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Built-in (global) functions:

https://docs.python.org/3/library/functions.html
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Compound types

Sequences Set Mappings

String List Tuple Range Dictionary

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Sequences are ordered, indexable collections of

zero or more values.
Their contents may be:
- homogeneous/heterogeneous
- immutable/mutable
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Common sequence operations

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String (str object): immutable sequence of

characters; string literals are enclosed by
single or double quotes
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>>> 'hello'
'hello'
>>> 'hello' + ' ' + 'world'
'hello world'
>>> 'lo wo' in ('hello' + ' ' + 'world')
True
>>> 'world' * 3
'worldworldworld'
>>> len('hello')
5
>>> 'hello world'[3:10]
'lo worl’
>>> 'hello'[2:4] = 'ww'
Traceback (most recent call last):

File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>

TypeError: 'str' object does not support item assignment
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Also, multi-line strings with three

paired single/double quotes:

puzzle = """4.....8.5
.3.......
...7..... (newlines (‘\n'))

...
.2.....6.
(whitespace) ....8.4..
....1....
...6.3.7.
5..2.....
1.4......"""
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The almighty list: a mutable, heterogeneous

sequence; list literals are comma-separated
values enclosed by square brackets
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Mutable sequence operations

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>>> l = ['hello', 1, True, 3]

>>> l[2]
True
>>> 2 in l
False
>>> l.pop()
3
>>> del l[0]
>>> l
[1, True]
>>> l[0] = ['hello', 'there']
>>> l
[['hello', 'there'], True]
>>> l[-1] = 0
>>> l[1:-1] = [5, 4, 3, 2, 1]
>>> l
[['hello', 'there'], 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0]
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puzzle = """4.....8.5 Science Science

.3.......
...7.....
.2.....6.
....8.4..
....1....
...6.3.7.
5..2.....
1.4......"""

puzzle_rows = puzzle.split() # by default, splits on whitespace

[ '4.....8.5',
'.3.......',
'...7.....',
'.2.....6.',
'....8.4..',
'....1....',
'...6.3.7.',
'5..2.....',
‘1.4......' ]
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Iteration: for statement

- iterates over iterable types (e.g. sequences)
for c in "Hello rabbit":
if c == 'l' or c == 'r':
print('w', end='')
elif c == ' ':
print('-uh-', end='')
else:
print(c, end='')

Hewwo-uh-wabbit
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for r in puzzle_rows:
print(r, '->', r.count('.'), 'blanks')

4.....8.5 -> 6 blanks

.3....... -> 8 blanks
...7..... -> 8 blanks
.2.....6. -> 7 blanks
....8.4.. -> 7 blanks
....1.... -> 8 blanks
...6.3.7. -> 6 blanks
5..2..... -> 7 blanks
1.4...... -> 7 blanks
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blank_counts = []
for r in puzzle_rows:
blank_counts.append(r.count('.'))

[6, 8, 8, 7, 7, 8, 6, 7, 7]

# more Pythonic: list-comprehension

blank_counts = [r.count('.') for r in puzzle_rows]

[6, 8, 8, 7, 7, 8, 6, 7, 7]
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Tuples are immutable, heterogeneous

sequences (comma-separated literals
enclosed by parentheses)
Ranges are immutable sequences of
numbers (created with range function,
given start, stop, and optional step)
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>>> (1.5, -2.0)
(1.5, -2.0)
>>> (5,) # a one-tuple requires the trailing comma
(5,)
>>> (5) # otherwise it's just a parenthesized value
5
>>> () # zero-element tuple
()
>>> 5 in range(0, 10)
True
>>> 10 in range(0, 10)
False
>>> 3 in range(0, 10, 2)
False
>>> list(range(20, 10, -3))
[20, 17, 14, 11]
>>> range(20, 10, -3)[2:]
range(14, 8, -3)
>>> list(range(14, 8, -3))
[14, 11]
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recall, from Sudoku solution:

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rows = 'ABCDEFGHI'
cols = '123456789'

squares = []
for r in rows:
for c in cols:
squares.append(r + c)

print(len(squares))
print(squares[0:len(squares):5])

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[ 'A1', 'A6', 'B2', 'B7', 'C3', 'C8', 'D4', 'D9', 

'E5', 'F1', 'F6', 'G2', 'G7', 'H3', 'H8', 'I4', 'I9']
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rows = 'ABCDEFGHI'
cols = '123456789'

# more Pythonic: list-comprehension

squares = [r+c for r in rows for c in cols]

print(len(squares))
print(squares[0:len(squares):5])

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[ 'A1', 'A6', 'B2', 'B7', 'C3', 'C8', 'D4', 'D9', 

'E5', 'F1', 'F6', 'G2', 'G7', 'H3', 'H8', 'I4', 'I9']
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identifying “units”

column unit row unit box unit

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rows = 'ABCDEFGHI'
cols = '123456789'

c2_row = ['C'+c for c in cols]

c2_col = [r+'2' for r in rows]
c2_box = [r+c for r in rows[0:3] for c in cols[0:3]]

c2_units = [c2_row, c2_col, c2_box]

[['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9'],

['A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2'],
['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']]
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rows = 'ABCDEFGHI'
cols = '123456789'

all_units = # ?

print(len(all_units))
print(all_units)

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[['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'A4', 'A5', 'A6', 'A7', 'A8', 'A9'],
...
['I1', 'I2', 'I3', 'I4', 'I5', 'I6', 'I7', 'I8', 'I9'],
['A1', 'B1', 'C1', 'D1', 'E1', 'F1', 'G1', 'H1', 'I1'],
...
['A9', 'B9', 'C9', 'D9', 'E9', 'F9', 'G9', 'H9', 'I9'],
['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3'],
...
['G7', 'G8', 'G9', 'H7', 'H8', 'H9', 'I7', 'I8', 'I9']]
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hints:
- result is the concatenation of multiple list

comprehension expressions
- each list comprehension must create

a list of lists (each unit is a list)
- try to do it in pieces first!
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row_units = [[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows]

[['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'A4', 'A5', 'A6', 'A7', 'A8', 'A9'],

['B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'B4', 'B5', 'B6', 'B7', 'B8', 'B9'],
['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9'],
...
['I1', 'I2', 'I3', 'I4', 'I5', 'I6', 'I7', 'I8', 'I9']]

col_units = [[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols]

[['A1', 'B1', 'C1', 'D1', 'E1', 'F1', 'G1', 'H1', 'I1'],

['A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2'],
['A3', 'B3', 'C3', 'D3', 'E3', 'F3', 'G3', 'H3', ‘I3'],
['A9', 'B9', 'C9', 'D9', 'E9', 'F9', 'G9', 'H9', 'I9']]
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“northwest” box unit:

['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']

nw_box_unit = [r+c for r in rows[0:3] for c in cols[0:3]]

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box_units = [[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]

for rs in ?
for cs in ?]
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box_units = [[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]

for rs in (rows[0:3], rows[3:6], rows[6:9])
for cs in (cols[0:3], cols[3:6], cols[6:9])]

[['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3'],

['A4', 'A5', 'A6', 'B4', 'B5', 'B6', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6'],
['A7', 'A8', 'A9', 'B7', 'B8', 'B9', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9'],
...
['G4', 'G5', 'G6', 'H4', 'H5', 'H6', 'I4', 'I5', 'I6'],
['G7', 'G8', 'G9', 'H7', 'H8', 'H9', 'I7', 'I8', 'I9']]
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box_units = [[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]

for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')]

[['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3'],

['A4', 'A5', 'A6', 'B4', 'B5', 'B6', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6'],
['A7', 'A8', 'A9', 'B7', 'B8', 'B9', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9'],
...
['G4', 'G5', 'G6', 'H4', 'H5', 'H6', 'I4', 'I5', 'I6'],
['G7', 'G8', 'G9', 'H7', 'H8', 'H9', 'I7', 'I8', 'I9']]
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all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +

[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])
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all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +

[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])

c2_units = # ?
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all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +

[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])

c2_units = [u for u in all_units if 'C2' in u]

# filtered list comprehension

[['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9'],

['A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2'],
['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']]
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all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +

[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', ‘GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])

square_units = [(s, [u for u in all_units if s in u])

for s in squares]

print(square_units[0])

('A1',
[['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'A4', 'A5', 'A6', 'A7', 'A8', 'A9'],
['A1', 'B1', 'C1', 'D1', 'E1', 'F1', 'G1', 'H1', 'I1'],
['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']])
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to_find = 'C2'
for entry in square_units:
if entry[0] == to_find:
units = entry[1]
break
else: # enter when loop exhausts all values (i.e., no break)
units = None # special value that represents ... nothing

print(units)

[['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9'],

['A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2'],
['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']]
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for entry in square_units:

if entry[0] == to_find:
units = entry[1]
break
else: # enter when loop exhausts all values (i.e., no break)
units = None # special value that represents ... nothing

- Not very efficient!

- We need to “look up” the units/peers of
a given square very frequently while
solving a puzzle
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Enter mapping compound type: dict

Mutable structure that (efficiently) maps
keys to arbitrary values.
- keys must be hashable — more on this
later, but for now assume this includes
all immutable built-in types
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Operation Result

len(d) returns the number of mappings in dictionary d

d[k] returns the value in dictionary d with key k

d[k] = val sets the value for key k in dictionary d to val

del d[k] removes the mapping for key k

k in d returns True if d has key k, else False

k not in d equivalent to not key in d

d.items() returns an iterator over d’s (key, value) pairs

d.keys() returns an iterator over d’s keys

d.values() returns an iterator over d’s values

Dictionary operations
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>>> alter_egos = {'Superman': 'Clark Kent',

'Batman': 'Bruce Wayne',
'Spiderman': 'Peter Parker'}
>>> alter_egos['Superman']
'Clark Kent'
>>> alter_egos['Iron Man'] = 'Tony Stark'
>>> alter_egos
{'Batman': 'Bruce Wayne',
'Iron Man': 'Tony Stark',
'Superman': 'Clark Kent',
'Spiderman': 'Peter Parker'}
>>> alter_egos['Dr. Doom']
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>
KeyError: 'Dr. Doom'
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# aside: exception handling

alter_egos = {'Superman': 'Clark Kent',

'Batman': 'Bruce Wayne',
'Spiderman': 'Peter ParkerÕ}

try:
dd_ego = alter_egos['Dr. Doom']
except:
print("Dr. Doom's alter ego not known")
else:
print('Dr. Doom =', dd_ego)
finally:
print('Thanks for playing!')

Dr. Doom's alter ego not known

Thanks for playing!
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# alternative: use get method with a default

print(alter_egos.get('Superman', 'unknown'))
print(alter_egos.get('Dr. Doom', 'unknown'))

Clark Kent
unknown
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# if no default, get returns None if no mapping

print(alter_egos.get('Superman'))
print(alter_egos.get('Dr. Doom'))

Clark Kent
None
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# note: keys are not stored or returned in order!

alter_egos = {'Superman': 'Clark Kent',

'Batman': 'Bruce Wayne',
'Spiderman': 'Peter Parker',
'Iron Man': 'Tony Stark'}

for k, v in alter_egos.items():
print(k, '=>', v)

Iron Man => Tony Stark

Superman => Clark Kent
Batman => Bruce Wayne
Spiderman => Peter Parker
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# use sorted() to explicitly sort keys

alter_egos = {'Superman': 'Clark Kent',

'Batman': 'Bruce Wayne',
'Spiderman': 'Peter Parker',
'Iron Man': 'Tony Stark'}

for superhero in sorted(alter_egos.keys()):

print(superhero, '=>', alter_egos[superhero])

Batman => Bruce Wayne

Iron Man => Tony Stark
Spiderman => Peter Parker
Superman => Clark Kent
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# e.g., constructing a dictionary

alpha = 'ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ'
alpha_num = {}

for i in range(0, len(alpha)):

alpha_num[alpha[i]] = i+1 # create new dict entry

{'X': 24, 'M': 13, 'C': 3, 'S': 19, 'B': 2, 


'V': 22, 'F': 6, 'A': 1, 'U': 21, 'R': 18, 

'Z': 26, 'D': 4, 'P': 16, 'I': 9, 'Q': 17, 

'T': 20, 'N': 14, 'G': 7, 'W': 23, 'O': 15,

'H': 8, 'L': 12, 'K': 11, 'Y': 25, 'J': 10,

'E': 5}
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# Pythonically: dict comprehension

alpha = 'ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ'
alpha_num = {alpha[i]: i+1 for i in range(0, len(alpha))}

{'X': 24, 'M': 13, 'C': 3, 'S': 19, 'B': 2, 


'V': 22, 'F': 6, 'A': 1, 'U': 21, 'R': 18, 

'Z': 26, 'D': 4, 'P': 16, 'I': 9, 'Q': 17, 

'T': 20, 'N': 14, 'G': 7, 'W': 23, 'O': 15,

'H': 8, 'L': 12, 'K': 11, 'Y': 25, 'J': 10,

'E': 5}
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back to Sudoku:
all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +
[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])

square_units = [(s, [u for u in all_units if s in u])

for s in squares]

for entry in square_units:

if entry[0] == 'C2':
c2_units = entry[1]
break
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all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +

[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])

# use a dictionary for mapping

units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u]
for s in squares}

c2_units = units['C2']
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units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u]

for s in squares}

c2_units = units['C2']

c2_peers = [sq for u in c2_units for sq in u]

print(len(c2_peers))
print(c2_peers)

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['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9',

'A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2',

'A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']
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['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9',

'A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2',

'A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']

Problems:
1. List contains duplicate peers
2. List of peers of a square should not
include the square itself ! (C2, above)
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Enter (last) compound type: set

- unordered collection with no duplicates
- elements must also be hashable
- create from sequences with set()
- set literals with {...}
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Operation Result

len(s) returns the number of items in set s

x in s tests if x is in set k

x not in s equivalent to not x in s

s1.isdisjoint(s2) returns True if set s1 has no elements in common with set s2

s1 <= s2 tests if every element of set s1 is in set s2

s1 | s2 returns a new set with elements from sets s1 and s2

s1 & s2 returns a new set with elements common to sets s1 and s2

s1 - s2 returns a new set with elements from sets s1 not in s2

s1 ^ s2 returns a new set with elements from either s1 or s2 but not both

Set operations
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units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u]

for s in squares}

c2_units = units['C2']

c2_peers = [sq for u in c2_units for sq in u]

print(len(c2_peers))
print(c2_peers)

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['C1', 'C2', 'C3', 'C4', 'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9',

'A2', 'B2', 'C2', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2', 'H2', 'I2',

'A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C2', 'C3']
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units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u]

for s in squares}

c2_units = units['C2']

c2_peers = set([sq for u in c2_units for sq in u]) - {'C2'}

print(len(c2_peers))
print(sorted(c2_peers)) # sorting into list for inspection

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['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C3', 'C4',

'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2',

'H2', 'I2']
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units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u]

for s in squares}

peers = {s: (set([sq for u in units[s] for sq in u]) - {s})

for s in squares }

c2_peers = peers['C2']

print(len(c2_peers))
print(sorted(c2_peers))

20
['A1', 'A2', 'A3', 'B1', 'B2', 'B3', 'C1', 'C3', 'C4',

'C5', 'C6', 'C7', 'C8', 'C9', 'D2', 'E2', 'F2', 'G2',

'H2', 'I2']
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rows = 'ABCDEFGHI' Science Science

cols = '123456789'

# list of square names

squares = [r+c for r in rows for c in cols]

# list of lists of squares (each sublist is a unit)

all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +
[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])

# dictionary mapping a square to a list of lists of squares

units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u]
for s in squares}

# dictionary mapping a square to a set of squares

peers = {s: (set([sq for u in units[s] for sq in u]) - {s})
for s in squares }
 Computer
Science Science

squares = [r+c for r in rows for c in cols]

assert(len(squares) == 81)

all_units = ([[r+c for c in cols] for r in rows] +

[[r+c for r in rows] for c in cols] +
[[r+c for r in rs for c in cs]
for rs in ('ABC', 'DEF', 'GHI')
for cs in ('123', '456', '789')])
assert(len(all_units) == 27)

units = {s: [u for u in all_units if s in u] for s in squares}

assert(all(len(units[s]) == 3 for s in squares))

peers = {s: (set([sq for u in units[s] for sq in u]) - {s})

for s in squares }
assert(all(len(peers[s]) == 20 for s in squares))
 Computer
Science Science

Built-in “all” and “any” functions:

def all(iterable):
for element in iterable:
if not element:
return False
return True

def any(iterable):
for element in iterable:
if element:
return True
return False
 Computer
Science Science

§Functions
 Computer
Science Science

def foo():
pass # special statement -- does nothing!
# (useful as a placeholder)

def bar():
"""Calls foo. This is a function *docstring*.
It should briefly describe what the function
does. I won't always use them in slides, but
you should!"""
foo() # call foo
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum(x, y):

return x+y # works for all plus-able things!

print(mysum(1, 2))
print(mysum('hello', 'world'))

3
helloworld
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum_v2(vals):
"""This version takes a list of vals to add"""
accum = 0 # ← restricts to numbers
for item in vals:
accum += item
return accum

print(mysum_v2([1, 2, 3, 4, 5]))
print(mysum_v2(range(10)))
print(mysum_v2(['hello', 'world']))

15
45
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "functions.py", line 12, in <module>
print(mysum_v2(['hello', 'world']))
File "functions.py", line 7, in mysum_v2
accum += item
TypeError: unsupported operand type(s) for +=: 'int' and 'str'
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum_v3(vals, start):

"""This version also takes a start value"""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum += item
return accum

print(mysum_v3([1, 2, 3, 4, 5], 0))

print(mysum_v3(['hello', 'world'], ''))
print(mysum_v3([(1, 2), (), (5,)], ()))

15
helloworld
(1, 2, 5)
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum_v4(vals, start=0):

"""This version defaults to using 0 for start"""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum += item
return accum

print(mysum_v4([1, 2, 3, 4, 5]))
print(mysum_v4(['hello', 'world'], ''))
print(mysum_v4(['hello', 'world'], start=''))
print(mysum_v4(start='-->', vals=['a', 'b', 'c']))

15
helloworld
helloworld
-->abc
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum_v5(*vals, start=0):

"""This version takes an arbitrary number of
arguments that are automatically bundled into
the vals variable."""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum += item
return accum

print(mysum_v5(1, 2, 3, 4))
print(mysum_v5('hello', ' ', 'world', start='>'))

10
>hello world
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum_v5(*vals, start=0):

"""This version takes an arbitrary number of
arguments that are automatically bundled into
the vals variable."""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum += item
return accum

print(mysum_v5(start='>', 'foo', 'bar'))

File "functions.py", line 49

print(mysum_v5(start='>', 'foo', 'bar'))
^
SyntaxError: non-keyword arg after keyword arg
 Computer
Science Science

def mysum_v5(*vals, start=0):

"""This version takes an arbitrary number of
arguments that are automatically bundled into
the vals variable."""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum += item
return accum

args = [10, 20, 30] + list(range(40, 110, 10))

print(mysum_v5(*args)) # "unpack" args from list

550
 Computer
Science Science

def reduce(combiner, *vals, start=0):

"""Combines all items in vals with the provided
combiner function and start value"""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum = combiner(accum, item)
return accum

def add(m, n):

return m+n

print(reduce(add, 1, 2, 3, 4))
print(reduce(add, 'hello', 'world', start=''))

10
helloworld
 Computer
Science Science

def reduce(combiner, *vals, start=0):

"""Combines all items in vals with the provided
combiner function and start value"""
accum = start
for item in vals:
accum = combiner(accum, item)
return accum

def mult(m, n):

return m*n

print(reduce(mult, 1, 2, 3, 4))
print(reduce(mult, 1, 2, 3, 4, start=1))

0
24
 Computer
Science Science

def add(m, n):

return m+n

def mult(m, n):

return m*n

... a bit verbose for functions defined


solely to be passed as arguments
 Computer
Science Science

# "lambda" defines single-expression functions

add = lambda m, n: m+n
mult = lambda m, n: m*n
pow_of_2 = lambda x: 2**x

add(5, 6) # => 11
mult(5, 6) # => 30
pow_of_2(10) #=> 1024

# "anonymous" lambda application

(lambda x, y: x**y)(2, 10) #=> 1024
 Computer
Science Science

def reduce(combiner, *vals, start=0):

accum = start
for item in vals:
accum = combiner(accum, item)
return accum

print(reduce(lambda x,y: x*y, 1, 2, 3, 4, start=1))

print(reduce(lambda sos,n: sos + n**2, 1, 2, 3, 4))
print(reduce(lambda total, s: total + len(s),
'hello', 'beautiful', 'world'))
print(reduce(lambda s, l: s & set(l), # set intersect
range(0,10), range(5,20), range(8,12),
start=set(range(0,100))))

24
30
19
{8, 9}
 Computer
Science Science

// sorting strings by length in Java

String[] names = {"ingesting", "cakes", "is", "fun"};
Arrays.sort(names, new Comparator<String>() {
// custom Comparator object needed
public int compare(String s, String t) {
return s.length() - t.length();
}
});
for (String n: names) {
System.out.println(n);
}

is
fun
cakes
ingesting
 Computer
Science Science

Python global function “sorted”:

sorted(iterable[, key][, reverse])
Return a new sorted list from the items in iterable.
Has two optional arguments which must be specified as
keyword arguments.
key specifies a function of one argument that is used to extract
a comparison key from each list element: key=str.lower. The
default value is None (compare the elements directly).
reverse is a boolean value. If set to True, then the list elements
are sorted as if each comparison were reversed.
 Computer
Science Science

>>> sorted([-3, 5, -1, 0])

[-3, -1, 0, 5]
>>> sorted([-3, 5, -1, 0], key=abs)
[0, -1, -3, 5]
>>> sorted(['ingesting', 'cakes', 'is', 'fun'])
['cakes', 'fun', 'ingesting', 'is']
>>> sorted(['ingesting', 'cakes', 'is', 'fun'],
key=lambda s: len(s))
['is', 'fun', 'cakes', 'ingesting']
>>> sorted(['ingesting', 'cakes', 'is', 'fun'], 

key=len)
['is', 'fun', 'cakes', 'ingesting']
>>> sorted(['ingesting', 'cakes', 'is', 'fun'],
key=lambda s: s.count('i'),
reverse=True)
['ingesting', 'is', 'cakes', 'fun']
 Computer
Science Science

def print_char_sheet(name, # normal arg

*inventory, # arbitrary num of args in tuple
race='Human', # keyword arg with default
**info): # arbitrary keyword args in dict
"""Demonstrates all sorts of arg types."""
print('Name: ', name)
print('Race: ', race) Name: Joe
print('Inventory:') Race: Human
Inventory:
for item in inventory: - scissors
print(' -', item) - phone
for k in sorted(info.keys()): * home = Chicago
print('*', k, '=', info[k])
Name: Mary
Race: Elf
Inventory:
- sword
print_char_sheet('Joe', 'scissors', 'phone',
home='Chicago') Name: Brad
Race: Dwarf
print_char_sheet('Mary', 'sword', race='Elf') Inventory:
- axe
- torch
print_char_sheet('Brad', 'axe', 'torch', 'match',
- match
status='single', race='Dwarf', * height = short
height='short') * status = single
 Computer
Science Science

def i_take_3_args(foo, bar, baz):

print('Got', foo, bar, baz)

i_take_3_args(1, 2, 3) # positional args

i_take_3_args(baz=3, foo=1, bar=2) # named args

args = {'bar': 2, 'baz': 3, 'foo': 1}

i_take_3_args(**args) # args from dictionary

Got 1 2 3
Got 1 2 3
Got 1 2 3
 Computer
Science Science

Digression: on assignment (=) statements


target = expression
1. if target is a name, evaluate expression
and bind target to resulting object
2. if target is subscripted or sliced, follow
(mutable) target's assignment rule
3. if target and expression are lists, evaluate
all expressions then assign
corresponding items
 Computer
Science Science

>>> a = 10
>>> b = a + 10
>>> tmp = a
>>> a = b
>>> b = tmp
>>> (a, b)
(20, 10)
>>> l = [10, 9, 8, 7, 6, '...']
>>> l[-1] = 5
>>> l[len(l):] = [4, 3, 2, 1, 'Bang!']
>>> l
[10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 'Bang!']
 Computer
Science Science

>>> a, b, c = (2**0, 2**1, 2**2)

>>> (a, b, c)
(1, 2, 4)
>>> person = ['John', 'Doe']
>>> first, last = person
>>> first, last
('John', 'Doe')
>>> animal, *etc = 'Lions', 'Tigers', 'Bears', 'Oh my'
>>> [animal, etc]
['Lions', ['Tigers', 'Bears', 'Oh my']]
>>> _, *ns = range(0, 100, 9)
>>> ns
[9, 18, 27, 36, 45, 54, 63, 72, 81, 90, 99]
>>> a, b = b, a
>>> c, d, e = c+1, c+2, c+3
>>> [a, b, c, d, e]
[2, 1, 5, 6, 7]
 Computer
Science Science

def fibonacci(nth):
a, b = 1, 1
for _ in range(nth-1):
a, b = b, a+b
return a

print([fibonacci(i) for i in range(1, 15)])

[1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377]

 Computer
Science Science

Control flow recap:

- assignment (single/multiple): =
- branching: if…elif…else
- looping: for, while; 

break, continue, else
- exceptions: try…except…

else…finally
- doing nothing: pass
 Computer
Science Science

puzzle = """4.....8.5
.3.......
{'A1': '4',
...7.....
'A2': None,
.2.....6. 'A3': None,
....8.4.. 'A4': None,
....1.... 'A5': None,
...6.3.7. 'A6': None,
5..2..... 'A7': '8',
1.4......""" 'A8': None,
'A9': '5',
...
'I1': '1',
def parse_puzzle(puz): 'I2': None,
puzzle = [c if c.isdigit() else None 'I3': '4',
for c in puz if c not in ' \n'] 'I4': None,
assert(len(puzzle) == 81) 'I5': None,
return {squares[i]: puzzle[i] 'I6': None,
'I7': None,
for i in range(0, len(squares))}
'I8': None,
'I9': None}
print(parse_puzzle(puzzle))
 Computer
Science Science

sol = {s: '123456789' for s in squares}

for sq, val in parse_puzzle(puzzle).items():

if val:
assign(sol, sq, val)
 Computer
Science Science

def assign(sol, sq, val):

# eliminate all values from square sq except val

def eliminate(sol, sq, val):

# remove value val from square sq, then
# (1) if there's only one value left, eliminate
# it from all my peers
# (2) if we just eliminated the second-to-last
# entry for a given value in some unit,
# assign the value to the final square
 Computer
Science Science

def assign(sol, sq, val):

for other in sol[sq].replace(val, ''):
eliminate(sol, sq, other)

def eliminate(sol, sq, val):

# remove value val from square sq, then
# (1) if there's only one value left, eliminate
# it from all my peers
# (2) if we just eliminated the second-to-last
# entry for a given value in some unit,
# assign the value to the final square
 Computer
Science Science

def assign(sol, sq, val):

for other in sol[sq].replace(val, ''):
eliminate(sol, sq, other)

def eliminate(sol, sq, val):

sol[sq] = sol[sq].replace(val, '')
# (1) if there's only one value left, eliminate
# it from all my peers
# (2) if we just eliminated the second-to-last
# entry for a given value in some unit,
# assign the value to the final square
 Computer
Science Science

def assign(sol, sq, val):

for other in sol[sq].replace(val, ''):
eliminate(sol, sq, other)

def eliminate(sol, sq, val):

sol[sq] = sol[sq].replace(val, '')
if len(sol[sq]) == 1:
last = sol[sq][0]
for p in peers[sq]:
eliminate(sol, p, last)
# (2) if we just eliminated the second-to-last
# entry for a given value in some unit,
# assign the value to the final square
 Computer
Science Science

def assign(sol, sq, val):

for other in sol[sq].replace(val, ''):
eliminate(sol, sq, other)

def eliminate(sol, sq, val):

sol[sq] = sol[sq].replace(val, '')
if len(sol[sq]) == 1:
last = sol[sq][0]
for p in peers[sq]:
eliminate(sol, p, last)
for u in units[sq]:
candidates = [s for s in u if val in sol[s]]
if len(candidates) == 1:
assign(sol, candidates[0], val)
 Computer
Science Science

def assign(sol, sq, val):

for other in sol[sq].replace(val, ''):
eliminate(sol, sq, other)

def eliminate(sol, sq, val):

# need to stop the recursion!
if val not in sol[sq]:
return
sol[sq] = sol[sq].replace(val, '')
if len(sol[sq]) == 1:
last = sol[sq][0]
for p in peers[sq]:
eliminate(sol, p, last)
for u in units[sq]:
candidates = [s for s in u if val in sol[s]]
if len(candidates) == 1:
assign(sol, candidates[0], val)
 Computer
Science Science

Demo
 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
# find a square with the least number of values > 1
#
# (1) "guess" one of the values (assign it) and
# try to solve the rest of the puzzle
#
# (2) if we guessed wrong and the solution is broken,
# backtrack --- i.e., restore the original values
# and guess another value
 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
sq = min((s for s in squares if len(sol[s]) > 1),
key=lambda s: len(sol[s]))
# (1) "guess" one of the values (assign it) and
# try to solve the rest of the puzzle
#
# (2) if we guessed wrong and the solution is broken,
# backtrack --- i.e., restore the original values
# and guess another value
 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
sq = min((s for s in squares if len(sol[s]) > 1),
key=lambda s: len(sol[s]))
assign(sol, sq, val)
search(sol)

# (2) if we guessed wrong and the solution is broken,

# backtrack --- i.e., restore the original values
# and guess another value
 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
sq = min((s for s in squares if len(sol[s]) > 1),
key=lambda s: len(sol[s]))

orig = sol.copy() # copy the original grid

for val in orig[sq]:
assign(sol, sq, val)
if not search(sol): # if search fails,
sol.update(orig) # restore original
else:
break
 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
sq = min((s for s in squares if len(sol[s]) > 1),
key=lambda s: len(sol[s]))

orig = sol.copy() # copy the original grid

for val in orig[sq]:
assign(sol, sq, val)
if not search(sol): # if search fails,
sol.update(orig) # restore original
else:
break

missing: search success/failure detection

 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
if any(not sol[s] for s in squares):
# a square with no values is illegal
return False
elif all(len(sol[s]) == 1 for s in squares):
# if all squares have just one value, we're done
return True
else:
sq = min((s for s in squares if len(sol[s]) > 1),
key=lambda s: len(sol[s]))
orig = sol.copy()
for val in orig[sq]:
assign(sol, sq, val)
if not search(sol):
sol.update(orig)
else:
break
 Computer
Science Science

def search(sol):
if any(not sol[s] for s in squares):
return False
elif all(len(sol[s]) == 1 for s in squares):
return True
else:
sq = min((s for s in squares if len(sol[s]) > 1),
key=lambda s: len(sol[s]))
orig = sol.copy()
for val in orig[sq]:
assign(sol, sq, val)
if search(sol):
return True # propagate success back up
else:
sol.update(orig)
else:
return False # no guesses worked = earlier fail
 Computer
Science Science

Demo
 Computer
Science Science

§Classes and OOP

 Computer
Science Science

class Point:
pass

p = Point()
p.x = 10
p.y = 20
print('x=', p.x, 'y=', p.y)

x= 10 y= 20
 Computer
Science Science

class Point:
def __init__(self): # `self` refers to "this" object
self.x = 10
self.y = 20

p = Point()
print('x=', p.x, 'y=', p.y)

x= 10 y= 20
 Computer
Science Science

class Point:
def __init__(self, xinit, yinit):
self.x = xinit
self.y = yinit

p = Point(15, 25)
print('x=', p.x, 'y=', p.y)

x= 15 y= 25
 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
...
def translate(self, dx, dy):
self.x += dx
self.y += dy

def dist_to_origin(self):
return sqrt(self.x ** 2 + self.y ** 2)

def __str__(self): # automatically called by `print`

return '({},{})'.format(self.x, self.y)

p = Point(0, 0)
p.translate(3, 4)
print('dist of', p, '=', p.dist_to_origin())

dist of (3,4) = 5.0

 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
...
def translate(self, dx, dy):
self.x += dx
self.y += dy

def dist_to_origin(self):
return sqrt(self.x ** 2 + self.y ** 2)

def __str__(self): # automatically called by `print`

return '({},{})'.format(self.x, self.y)

p = Point(0, 0)
Point.translate(p, 4, 3) # same as p.translate(4, 3)
print('dist of', p, '=', Point.dist_to_origin(p))

dist of (4,3) = 5.0

 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
...
def translate(self, dx, dy):
self.x += dx
self.y += dy

def dist_to_origin(self):
return sqrt(self.x ** 2 + self.y ** 2)

def __str__(self): # automatically called by `print`

return '({},{})'.format(self.x, self.y)

q = Point(0, 0)
r = Point(0, 0)
print(q == r) # based on object identity (reference)

False
 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
...
def __eq__(self, other): # called for '=='
if isinstance(other, Point):
return self.x == other.x and self.y == other.y
return NotImplemented

p = Point(10, 20)
q = Point(10, 20)
r = Point(30, 40)

print(p == q)
print(p == r)
print(p == 'hello')

True
False
False
 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
...
def __add__(self, other): # called for '+'
if isinstance(other, Point):
return Point(self.x+other.x, self.y+other.y)
return NotImplemented

p = Point(10, 20)
q = Point(10, 20)
r = Point(30, 40)

print(p + q + r)
print(p + 10)

(50,80)
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "classes.py", line 95, in <module>
print(p+10)
TypeError: unsupported operand type(s) for +: 'Point' and 'int'
 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
...
def __iter__(self):
yield self.x # ok to not understand this now!
yield self.y # ditto this

p = Point(19, 20)
for coord in p:
print(coord)

l = list(p)
print(l)
cs = [c for c in p]
print(cs)

19
20
[19, 20]
[19, 20]
 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
prev_coords = [] # class variable!

def __init__(self, x=0, y=0):

self.x = x
self.y = y

def translate(self, dx, dy):

self.prev_coords.append((self.x, self.y))
self.x += dx
self.y += dy

p = Point()
q = Point(1, 2)

p.translate(5, 5) [(0, 0), (5, 5)]

p.translate(-3, 3) [(0, 0), (5, 5), (1, 2)]
print(p.prev_coords)
q.translate(10, 10)
print(q.prev_coords)
 Computer
Science Science
class Point:
def __init__(self, x=0, y=0):
self.x = x
self.y = y
self.prev_coords = [] # instance variable

def translate(self, dx, dy):

self.prev_coords.append((self.x, self.y))
self.x += dx
self.y += dy

p = Point()
q = Point(1, 2)

p.translate(5, 5) [(0, 0), (5, 5)]

p.translate(-3, 3) [(1, 2)]
print(p.prev_coords)
q.translate(10, 10)
print(q.prev_coords)
 Computer
Science Science
class Point3D(Point): # inherit from Point
def __init__(self, x, y, z):
super().__init__(x, y)
self.z = z

def dist_to_origin(self):
dist2d = super().dist_to_origin()
return sqrt(dist2d ** 2 + self.z ** 2)

def __str__(self): # override base class impl

return '({},{},{})'.format(self.x, self.y, self.z)

p = Point3D(1, 1, 1)
print('dist of', p, '=', p.dist_to_origin())

p.translate(10, 10) dist of (1,1,1) = 1.732

p.translate(10, 10) (21,21,1)
print(p) [(1, 1), (11, 11)]
print(p.prev_coords) (26,26)
print(p + Point(5, 5))