1-Applications of Python
1-Applications of Python
1-Applications of Python
Hello folks!
Congratulations on completing the six learning modules of this training. All the essential aspects
of Python programming were covered in the six modules. I hope you enjoyed this training as
much as I did bringing it to you.
Today Python has become language of choice for data scientists. Python libraries like NumPy, Pandas
and Matplotlib are used extensively in the process of data analysis and collection, processing and
cleansing of data sets, applying mathematical algorithms to data and to generate visualizations for the
benefit of users. Commercial Python distributions such as Anaconda and Activestate provide all the
essential libraries required for data science.
Data science today has become a prominent buzzword and it has been termed as ‘sexiest job of 21st
century!’.
Machine Learning
This is another glamorous application area where Python developers are getting attracted. Based upon
the past data, Python libraries such as Scikit-learn, Tensorflow, and NLTK are widely used for prediction
of trends like customer satisfaction, projected values of stocks etc.
Medical Diagnosis: Machine learning techniques are used for the analysis of the importance of clinical
parameters and of their combinations for prognosis, e.g. prediction of disease progression, for the
extraction of medical knowledge for outcomes research, for therapy planning and support, and for overall
patient management.
Statistical Arbitrage: Machine learning methods are applied to automate trading strategies where user
tries to implement a trading algorithm for a set of securities on the basis of quantities such as historical
correlations and general economic variables.
Learning associations: Machine learning helps the process of developing insights into various
associations between products and buying behaviors of customers.
Basket analysis- studying the association between the products people buy and suggesting the
associated product to the customer, is a well known phenomenon we see while doing online shopping.
Machine learning is at work behind this analysis.
Prediction: Current prediction is one of the hottest machine learning algorithms. Businesses are interested
in finding out what will be my sales next month / year / Diwali, etc. so that business can take required
decision (related to procurement, stocks, etc.) on time.
Web Development
Another application area which is becoming increasing popular with Python developers is web
development. Simple to complex web applications can be developed using easy to use web application
frameworks like django, Pyramid, Flask etc. These frameworks are used extensively by various IT
companies. Dropbox for example uses django as a backend to store, synchronize local folders.
Most of the web servers today are compatible with WSGI (Web Server Gateway Interface) – a
specification for universal interface between Python web frameworks and web servers. All leading web
servers such as Apache, IIS, Nginx etc can now host Python web applications. Google’s App Engine
hosts web applications built with almost all Python web frameworks.
Image processing
Face detection and gesture recognition using OpenCV library and Python is another important
application. OpenCV is a C++ library, but has been ported to Python. This library has lot of extremely
powerful image processing functions.
Facebook’s automatic tag suggestion feature, which used face recognition to suggest people you might
want to tag in your photos, is an instance of OpenCV at work. Other instances of OpenCV applications
are:
Game Development
Python is a popular choice of game developers. The Pygame library is extensively used for building
games for desktop as well as mobile platforms. Pygame applications can be installed on Android too.
Embedded Systems and IoT
Another important area of Python application is in embedded systems. Raspberry Pi is a very popular yet
a low cost single board computer. It is being extensively used in automation products, robotics, IoT, and
kiosk applications. Those of you with Electronics background can certainly explore the possibility of
becoming innovators.
Apart from Raspberry Pi, other microcontrollers can also be programmed with Python. A lightweight
version of Python called micropython has been developed especially for microcontrollers. Popular
microcontrollers like Arduino are used in many IoT products and programmed with Python. A special
micropython compatible controller called Pyboard has also been developed.
Android apps
Although Android apps are predominantly developed using Android SDK which is more or less like Java,
Python can also be used to develop Android apps. Python’s Kivy library has all the functionality required
to build a mobile application.
Automated Jobs
Python is extremely useful and widely used for automating CRON jobs. Certain tasks like backups can be
scheduled to be invoked automatically. These tasks are defined in Python scripts and operating system
scheduler executes them at predefined times.
Python is embedded as a scripting language in many popular software products. This is similar to VBA
used for writing macros in Excel, Powerpoint etc. Similarly Python API is integrated with Maya, PaintShop
pro, etc.
Python as a Rapid Development Tool
Although Python is becoming increasingly popular, software development field is still dominated by Java
and Dot net platform. However, Java and C# developers are also taking help of power of Python’s rapid
development capabilities. Jython, the JRE implementation of Python and IronPython, the dot net
implementation interact seamlessly with Java and C# respectively. For example- Jython can use all Java
libraries such as Swing, etc. So the development time can be minimized by using simpler Python syntax
and Java libraries for prototyping of the software product.
Python has found applications in very diverse fields. There is Astropy library is a collection of software
packages written in the Python programming language and designed for use in astronomy. BioPython
package contains functionality useful for computational biology and bio-informatics.
More and more companies, be it start ups or established ones are using Python for one or other purpose
in their development activities. Hence, lot of opportunities are waiting for those with appropriate Python
skills. This training program has given a solid foundation for you to grab these opportunities. Internshala
wishes you all the best in your endeavour!