Python for Informatics

LESSON 1

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Course Orientation
2

 Email: All email should be sent via the

Blackboard email facility.
 Please indicate “Python for Informatics” in the
subject line, otherwise I won’t know which one of
my courses you are referring to.
 Contact by email is preferred, however, if and
when it is necessary the instructor can be
contacted by phone (see syllabus).

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Course Orientation
3

 All projects will be posted on the Blackboard web site.

See syllabus for schedule.
 Students are responsible for periodically logging on to
the Blackboard web site.
 Completed projects must be submitted via the
Blackboard web site.
 The instructor will not be able to rigorously debug
student projects. However, if a code error has a student
stumped, then the error message and the associated
source code should be copy-and-pasted and posted on the
course discussion list.
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 Introduction
4

 A program or algorithm is like a recipe.

 Fundamentally, computers are
encoding/decoding machines.
 Everything that a computer represents,
whether it be text, numbers, graphics, sound,
metadata, or the signal radio source
SHGb02+14a, is an encoding of a series of ones
and zeroes.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Introduction
5

 The ones and zeroes within a computer

are physically rendered as voltage levels
on wires and electro-magnetic
fluctuations within memory.
 Encoding schemes can be layered on top
of encoding schemes up top of...

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Introduction
6
 What is Python?
Python is a highly flexible and dynamic
object-oriented programming language
developed by Guido van Rossum in 1990.
Python offers a wealth of extension modules
that enable the programmer to quickly
develop software by leveraging freely
accessible software that is domain-specific
and reusable.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Introduction
7

Python is used by companies like Google,

Industrial Light & Magic, Nextel, Kodi, and
others.
Python is powerful, yet relatively easy to
learn.
Python is a great first language for anyone
learning to program for the first time.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Introduction
8

 Varieties of Python – There are three

major implementations of Python.
CPython
IronPython
Jython

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Introduction
9
 What is CPython?
CPython is the “Classic” Python. This
implementation of Python is written in
the standard C language. Accordingly,
it is the fastest implementation, while
still assuring portability across all major
platforms.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Introduction
10
 What is IronPython?
IronPython is an implementation of
Python that runs on the Common
Language Runtime (CLR) virtual
machine shared by the Microsoft .NET
languages. If you want to code in
Python as well as utilize the .NET
Framework, then IronPython is an
excellent choice.
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 Introduction
11
 What is Jython?
Jython is an implementation of Python
that is written in the Java language. It
will run on the Java Virtual Machine
(JVM), and thereby enjoys broad
portability across all major platforms.
Since Jython is written in Java, it can
also easily utilize Java packages.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Why Python?
12

 Why not some other language?

 Alternative languages to consider:

R

 SAS

 SQL

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Why not R?
13

 R could actually be a very good choice!

 Strengths of R
 Functionality is roughly equivalent to Python, with differences
being syntactical and presentational.
 R includes its own Integrated Development Environment
(IDE) as a standard component of the language (whereas with
Python, you need to employ third-party IDEs if you want to
work outside of the command line window).
 Weakness of R
 Utilizing other languages within R is not well supported.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Why not SAS?
14

 SAS could actually be a very good choice!

 Strengths of SAS – Offers strong support for…
 Data Management
 Data Analysis
 Business Intelligence
 Predictive Analytics

 Weaknesses of SAS
 For non-business fields such as scientific investigation, SAS is
not particularly well-suited.
 Expensive! SAS is a proprietary product, and is therefore not a
practical choice for start-ups or research teams operating on a
small budget.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Why not SQL?
15

 SQL (Structured Query Language) could actually be

a very good choice!
 Strengths of SQL
 Data Management
 Ad-hoc queries of highly structured data
 Fast
 Weaknesses of SQL
 Non-structured data sources are difficult to integrate.
 While R and Python can easily make use of SQL, SQL cannot
easily make use of R or Python.
 Strictly speaking, SQL is not a full computer language, and
thereby does not have the expressiveness of a full language.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Why Python?
16

 Strengths
 Flexible

 Dynamic

 Easily utilizes other languages such as R and SQL

 Wide availability of software modules, providing an

established treasure trove of prewritten, extensively tested,
and free software
 New modules addressing new and emerging domains are
continually being developed.
 Works with a variety of third-party software libraries

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Why Python?
17

 Supports Multiple Programming Paradigms

 Procedural
 Data centric approach using step-wise sequential processing, with
selection and iteration constructs, and procedure blocks – tends to
promote centralized architectures
 Functional
 Based on Alonzo Church’s Lambda Calculus, this approach uses
functional abstraction as the primary language unit – scope of data is
elegantly managed.
 Imperative
 Focuses on the direct transformation of program state
 Object-Oriented
 Uses encapsulation of data and methods, inheritance, and
polymorphism to support extensible and reusable code that can be
effective in managing complexity and change

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 What’s with the Name?
18

 The Python language was created by a guy

named Guido.
 He was (is) a fan of the British comedy
troupe Monty Python. He named his
language in “honor” of them.
 Guido van Rossum created Python in 1989
as an improvement upon the ABC language.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 The One Humongous Wart!
19

 Python has a big, ugly wart.

 The are two version branches of Python: 2.x and
3.x.
 Version 3.x is the most recent version.
 However, 3.x is not backward compatible with
2.x!
 Moreover, most informatics and data analytics
libraries are based on version 2.x.
 Therefore, we will be using version 2.x for
this course.
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 The Command Line, IDLE, and IPython
20

 The most rudimentary means of working with Python is

via the command line. Just type “python”…

 Then by typing print('Hello world!'), you will

have written the simplest program in Python.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 The Command Line, IDLE, and IPython
21

 A step up from the command line is an

editor with special support for Python
syntax, format, and presentation.
 A popular example of such an editor or
Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
is the IDLE application.
 The name IDLE is a reference to Eric Idle, a
member of the Monty Python comedy
troupe.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 The Command Line, IDLE, and IPython
22

 A step up from an IDE such as IDLE, is

IPython.
 IPython is a feature-rich Python
development environment that makes
programming in Python much easier.
Think of it as IDLE on steroids!

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 The Command Line, IDLE, and IPython
23

 IPython can also facilitate the learning

of the Python language
 For these reasons, we will be using
IPython for this course.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Canopy vs Anaconda
24

 Canopy and Anaconda are the two

major IPython IDEs.
 Both of them are free and excellent!
 Both of them have great community
support.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Canopy vs Anaconda
25

 Canopy boasts having a community that

provides a variety of strong, academic
resources.
 Therefore, we will be using the Canopy
IDE in this course.
 While Canopy is free for academic purposes
(that means you!), you must buy a license
for any commercial use.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Jupyter?
26

 Jupyter is the latest, greatest thing in

IPython-like IDEs. It is still relatively
new.
 However, Jupyter does not operate
quite the same as IPython.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Jupyter?
27

 Feel free to experiment with Jupyter at

your own risk!
 To serve as a stable and common basis
of our learning Python, we will be
using the Canopy IDE to interact
with IPython.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 The IPython Notebook
28

 One of the coolest and most powerful

features of IPython is the IPython
Notebook.
 IPython Notebook is a way of capturing
IPython programming sessions in a
special format that can be saved and
exchanged with colleagues.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 The IPython Notebook
29

 IPython Notebooks are HTML-based, and

are displayed and executed within a
standard HTML browser.
 IPython Notebooks are dynamic! Not only
can your colleagues see your IPython
session, they can also tweak your session
with their own input parameters and code
statements. These are then executed in their
browser!
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 The Spirit of the Internet
30

 Since a primary motivation for the

creation of the Internet was to
enable the sharing of information
in research and academia, the
spirit of the Internet is alive
with IPython Notebooks!

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Creating an IPython Notebook
31

 Creating an IPython Notebook is easy.

 From the File menu, select New, IPython Notebook

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Using an IPython Notebook
32

 Notice that there are two major Canopy

panes that are available to you when
you are working with a notebook.
 The large, upper pane is the notebook
editor pane—this is your view of the
notebook within Canopy. It is what you
see and use to create your notebook.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Using an IPython Notebook
33

 The large, lower pane is the

interactive, command line Python
pane.
 The command line pane allows you
to experiment with Python
commands outside of the notebook
session.
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 Using an IPython Notebook
34

 Within the Canopy notebook pane,

you can build your IPython
Notebook step by step, one cell at a
time.
 IPython cells are listed vertically in
the order that you enter them.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Using an IPython Notebook
35

 Each IPython code cell is composed of

input/output element pairs. The input
element of the cell accepts input from
the user, and the output element
displays the result of evaluating and
executing the input element.
 Cells are numbered to reflect the order
of entry.
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 Using an IPython Notebook
36

 The Notebook Editor has a cell toolbar that provides

quick access icons for performing cell editing operations.
 Cell editing operations include:
 Copying
 Pasting
 Cutting
 Inserting
 Moving (up or down)
 Running (executing the selected cell)
 Interrupting (the running of the notebook)
 Restarting (the Kernel—this will clear all variable values)

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Using an IPython Notebook
37

 These same cell editing operations can

be selected through the set of menus at
the top of the editor pane.
 The cell toolbar has a combo box that
is set to “Code” by default. This
indicates that your current entry mode
is for creating “code” cells.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Using an IPython Notebook
38

 Instead, you can select from a variety of

“heading” modes so you can create
“heading” cells.
 Any text you enter while in a heading
mode will display that text in a heading
cell with the associated heading format.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Printing Values
39

 Within either the notebook editor pane or

the command line pane, type the following:
print(5)
• You should see an integer output value of 5.
• Now let’s print a float value:
print(1.87)
• You should see a float output value of 1.87.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Printing Values
40

• Now print a series of characters, known

as a “string” or of type str:
print('Hello world!')

• You should see an output value of Hello

world!

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Printing Expressions
41

 Expressions are created by specifying

one or more operations that will be
performed or evaluated.
 When an expression is evaluated, we
say that it resolves to a value.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Printing Expressions
42

 The resolved value of an expression can then

be used as a part of a surrounding
statement.
 For example, if you type the following:
print(1 + 0.87)

 You should see an evaluated float value of

1.87.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Working with Variables
43

 There are many circumstances in programming,

wherein we need to hold onto a value for later use.
 Often when we refer back to a value, we also want
to update or change the value for some purpose.
 It is for these reasons that we benefit from the use
of variables.
 Variables are named recepticles that hold
values that may vary.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Would you like a box for that?
44

 Most of us hear this question almost

any time that we are at a restaurant and
are unable to finish our meal.
 Boxes are very convenient receptacles
for things that we are done with for
now, but will likely want to refer back
to later.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Would you like a box for that?
45

 The analogy of a box is an excellent

visualization of a program variable.
 Think of a variable as a box in memory
that contains whatever value you put
into it.
 You can always overwrite a previous
value with a new value.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Types and Encoding
46

 What's a data type?

 The concept of a data type is fundamental to
understanding how to program.
 There are two important aspects to any given data
type:
 Size – How much memory is set aside (allocated)
to be used by the data of that data type?
 Encoding Scheme – How will the bits in memory
be interpreted based on that data type?

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Types and Encoding
47

Whereas size deals with the implementation

details of how much space is need to manage
the data, the encoding scheme deals with the
semantics (meaning) of the data residing in
that space.
 Fortunately, with Python you rarely need to be
concerned about the size of your data types.
What really matters is what your objects mean.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Working with Integers vs Strings
48

 answer = 42
answer becomes a name for the integer 42.

 myJerseyNumber = '42'
myJerseyNumber becomes a name for the string "42"

 42 and '42' are not the same!

The first is an integer number.
The second is a string of two characters, a '4' followed by a
'2'.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Literal Values
49

 42 and '42' are examples of literal values

(they are literally exactly what they say
they are).
 The first is an integer that is literally 42.
 The second is a string that is literally
'42'
 A string is a sequence of characters.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Literal Values
50

 As an analogy, envision a piece of twine upon

which you thread a series of beads. Think of the
beads as being individual characters—the whole
strand of characters is a string.
 Here are some more examples of printing string
literals:
print 'And now, for something completely different! ‘
...displays And now, for something completely different!
print '42 / 5'
...displays 42 / 5

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Integer vs Floating Point Division
51

 Using Numeric Literals

print 42 / 5
...displays 8, since the operands are integer values, integer
division is performed. (This has changed with version 3,
however, where floating point division is performed even with
two integer operands.)

print 42.0 / 5.0

...displays 8.4, since if one or both of the operands is a floating
point value, floating point division is performed, and the result is
a floating point value. Therefore,...

print 42.0 / 5
...displays 8.4, since 42.0 is a floating point value
Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved
 Mixed Expressions
52

 An expression is a combination of values,

variables, and operations that are evaluated to
yield a resulting value.
 print 42.0 / 5 is an example of what is called a
mixed expression, because the expression is
composed of more than one data type. In this
case, we have an expression of one floating point
number (the 42.0) and one integer (the 5).

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Mixed Expressions
53

 A data type that supports a larger range of values

and/or more precise values is said to be wider
than a (narrower) data type that supports a
smaller range of values and/or less precision.
 When a mixed numeric expression is evaluated,
the narrower data type value (in this case, 5) is
converted to be of the wider data type, and the
evaluated value will have the size and type of the
wider data type.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Strings
54

 string concatenation
 Strings can be concatenated by using the
concatenation operator.
 The concatenation operator is the plus sign,
“+”, and it operates upon two string
operands.
 print 'Python ' + 'rocks!‘
...displays Python rocks!.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Strings
55

 You can think of concatenation as the way

that you “add” strings together.
 You can also think of concatenation as being
like gluing two strings together.
 What really happens when you concatenate
two strings is that a new string is created–
the new string represents a fusion of the two
string operands.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Backslashes and Slashes
56

 In Python, backslashes are used with String literals to

denote what is called an escape sequence. Special
characters are designated as an escape sequence. Here
are some examples:
\t tab
\n newline
\r carriage return
\¨ double quote
\\ backslash

 Note that \\ is the way that you indicate a backslash

within a String literal.

Copyright 2010 -- Walter Wesley

 Backslashes and Slashes
57

 Alternatively, if you are trying to indicate a backslash

character as a delimiter within a filepath, then you can
use the forward slash instead.
 The following two examples are equivalent, though the
second one is simpler and preferred:
photoName = 'C:\\Pictures\\Vacation\\Mazatlan\\sunset.jpg';
betterName = 'C:/Pictures/Vacation/Mazatlan/sunset.jpg';
 Using the slash character in this way is platform
independent (it works for Windows, OSX, and Linux).

Copyright 2010 -- Walter Wesley

 Variables and the Power of Naming
58

 The Power of Naming

 The power we attain through the naming of
variables is but one example of a more
generalized power of naming.
 We can name variables, methods, classes,
modules, packages, and programs—each one
of these serves as an abstraction. Naming is
abstraction.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Variables and the Power of Naming
59

 Much of Computer Science can be seen

as the shrewd development and
utilization of abstractions.
 Abstractions help us manage
complexity.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved

 Maintaining a Running Total
60

# This is an example of code that maintains a running total

total = 8

total = total + 4
print(total)
12

total += 3
print(total)
15

Copyright © 2015 Walter Wesley All Rights Reserved