Introduction to Programming
with Python
Python Review. Modified slides from Marty Stepp and Moshe Goldstein
1
Programming basics
code or source code: The sequence of instructions in a program.
syntax: The set of legal structures and commands that can be
used in a particular programming language.
output: The messages printed to the user by a program.
console: The text box onto which output is printed.
Some source code editors pop up the console as an external window,
and others contain their own console window.
2
Compiling and interpreting
Many languages require you to compile (translate) your program
into a form that the machine understands.
compile execute
source code byte code output
Hello.java Hello.class
Python is instead directly interpreted into machine instructions.
interpret
source code output
Hello.py
3
The Python Interpreter
•Python is an interpreted >>> 3 + 7
language
10
•The interpreter provides >>> 3 < 15
an interactive environment True
to play with the language
>>> 'print me'
Results of expressions are
•
'print me'
printed on the screen
>>> print 'print me'
print me
>>>
Expressions
expression: A data value or set of operations to compute a value.
Examples: 1 + 4 * 3
42
Arithmetic operators we will use:
+ - * / addition, subtraction/negation, multiplication, division
% modulus, a.k.a. remainder
** exponentiation
precedence: Order in which operations are computed.
* / % ** have a higher precedence than + -
1 + 3 * 4 is 13
Parentheses can be used to force a certain order of evaluation.
(1 + 3) * 4 is 16
5
Integer division
When we divide integers with / , the quotient is also an integer.
3 52
4 ) 14 27 ) 1425
12 135
2 75
54
21
More examples:
35 / 5 is 7
84 / 10 is 8
156 / 100 is 1
The % operator computes the remainder from a division of integers.
3 43
4 ) 14 5 ) 218
12 20
2 18
15
3
6
Real numbers
Python can also manipulate real numbers.
Examples: 6.022 -15.9997 42.0 2.143e17
The operators + - * / % ** ( ) all work for real numbers.
The / produces an exact answer: 15.0 / 2.0 is 7.5
The same rules of precedence also apply to real numbers:
Evaluate ( ) before * / % before + -
When integers and reals are mixed, the result is a real number.
Example: 1 / 2.0 is 0.5
The conversion occurs on a per-operator basis.
7 / 3 * 1.2 + 3 / 2
2 * 1.2 + 3 / 2
2.4 + 3 / 2
2.4 + 1
3.4
7
Math commands
Python has useful commands (or called functions) for performing
calculations.
Constant Description
Command name Description
e 2.7182818...
abs(value) absolute value
pi 3.1415926...
ceil(value) rounds up
cos(value) cosine, in radians
floor(value) rounds down
log(value) logarithm, base e
log10(value) logarithm, base 10
max(value1, value2) larger of two values
min(value1, value2) smaller of two values
round(value) nearest whole number
sin(value) sine, in radians
sqrt(value) square root
To use many of these commands, you must write the following at
the top of your Python program:
from math import * 8
Numbers: Floating Point
int(x) converts x to >>> 1.23232
1.2323200000000001
an integer
>>> print 1.23232
float(x) converts x 1.23232
to a floating point >>> 1.3E7
13000000.0
The interpreter
>>> int(2.0)
shows 2
a lot of digits >>> float(2)
2.0
Variables
variable: A named piece of memory that can store a value.
Usage:
Compute an expression's result,
store that result into a variable,
and use that variable later in the program.
assignment statement: Stores a value into a variable.
Syntax:
name = value
Examples: x = 5
gpa = 3.14
x 5 gpa 3.14
A variable that has been given a value can be used in expressions.
x + 4 is 9
Exercise: Evaluate the quadratic equation for a given a, b, and c.
10
Example
>>> x = 7
>>> x
7
>>> x+7
14
>>> x = 'hello'
>>> x
'hello'
>>>
print
print : Produces text output on the console.
Syntax:
print "Message"
print Expression
Prints the given text message or expression value on the console, and
moves the cursor down to the next line.
print Item1, Item2, ..., ItemN
Prints several messages and/or expressions on the same line.
Examples:
print "Hello, world!"
age = 45
print "You have", 65 - age, "years until retirement"
Output:
Hello, world!
You have 20 years until retirement
12
Example: print Statement
•Elements separated by
commas print with a space
between them >>> print 'hello'
•A comma at the end of the
hello
statement (print ‘hello’,) >>> print 'hello', 'there'
will not print a newline hello there
character
input
input : Reads a number from user input.
You can assign (store) the result of input into a variable.
Example:
age = input("How old are you? ")
print "Your age is", age
print "You have", 65 - age, "years until retirement"
Output:
How old are you? 53
Your age is 53
You have 12 years until retirement
Exercise: Write a Python program that prompts the user for
his/her amount of money, then reports how many Nintendo Wiis
the person can afford, and how much more money he/she will
need to afford an additional Wii.
14
Input: Example
print "What's your name?"
name = raw_input("> ")
print "What year were you born?"
birthyear = int(raw_input("> "))
print "Hi “, name, “!”, “You are “, 2016 – birthyear
% python input.py
What's your name?
> Michael
What year were you born?
>1980
Hi Michael! You are 31
