Module No.

2
MODULE TITLE

BASIC ELEMENTS OF PYTHON PART I

MODULE OVERVIEW

This module provides the first part of the basics of Python Programming Language. It provides the
learners an understanding of how to run a simple python program and how to use them to represent
data in their respective programs. The instructor is also expected to demonstrate the variables,
operators, input or output operations, and comments.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of the module, the students are expected to:

1. To write and run a simple Python Program
2. To explain the basic syntax of a Python Program
3. Use different data types
4. To assign data to variables
5. Use comments effectively in Python Program
6. To obtain input/output from a program's user by using the input/output functions.
7. To use the operators +, -, *, /, //, %, and **.

LEARNING CONTENTS

RUN hello_world.py

Let’s take a closer look at what Python does when you run hello_world.py. As it turns out, Python
does a fair amount of work, even when it runs a simple program:

_______________________________________________
hello_world.py print(“Hello Python World!”)__________________________

When you run this code, you should see this output:
_______________________________________________
Hello Python World!_______________________________

When you run the file hello_world.py, the ending .py indicates that the file is a Python program. Your
editor then runs the file through the Python interpreter, which reads through the program and
determines what each word in the program means. For example, when the interpreter sees the word
print followed by parentheses, it prints to the screen whatever is inside the parentheses.

As you write your programs, your editor highlights different parts of your program in different ways.
For example, it recognizes that print() is the name of a function and displays that word in one color.
It recognizes that "Hello Python world!" is not Python code and displays that phrase in a different
color. This feature is called syntax highlighting and is quite useful as you start to write your
programs.

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 1

 VARIABLE

Variable is a named placeholder to hold any type of data which the program can use to assign and
modify during execution. In Python, there is no need to declare a variable explicitly by specifying
whether the variable is an integer or a float, or any other type. To define a new variable in Python,
we simply assign a value to a name. If a need for a variable arises you need to think of a variable
name based on the rules mentioned in the following subsection and use it in the program.

Legal Variable Names

• Variable names can consist of any number of letters, underscores, and digits.
• A variable should not start with a number.
• Python Keywords are not allowed as variable names.
• Variable names are case-sensitive. For example, computer and Computer are different
variables.

Also, follow these guidelines while naming a variable, as having a consistent naming convention
helps in avoiding confusion and can reduce programming errors.
• Python variables use lowercase letters with words separated by underscores as necessary
to improve readability, like this whats_up, how_are_you. Although this is not strictly
enforced, it is considered a best practice to adhere to this convention.
• Avoid naming a variable where the first character is an underscore. While this is legal in
Python, it can limit the interoperability of your code with applications built by using other
programming languages.
• Ensure variable names are descriptive and clear enough. This allows other programmers to
have an idea about what the variable is representing.

Assigning Values to Variables

The general format for assigning values to variables is as follows:

variable_name = expression

The equal sign (=) also known as the simple assignment operator is used to assign values to
variables. In the general format, the operand to the left of the = operator is the name of the variable
and the operand to the right of the = operator is the expression that can be a value or any code
snippet that results in a value. That value is stored in the variable on the execution of the assignment
statement. An assignment operator should not be confused with the = used in algebra to denote
equality. For example, enter the code shown below in interactive mode and observe the results.

1. >>> number =100

2. >>> miles =1000.0
3. >>> name ="Python"
4. >>> number
100
5. >>> miles
1000.0
6. >>> name
'Python'

In ➀ integer type value is assigned to a variable number, in ➁ float type value has been assigned
to variable miles and in ➂ string type value is assigned to a variable name. ➃, ➄ and ➅ prints the
value assigned to these variables.

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 2

In Python, not only the value of a variable may change during program execution but also the type
of data that is assigned. You can assign an integer value to a variable, use it as an integer for a
while and then assign a string to the variable. A new assignment overrides any previous
assignments. For example,

1. >>> century = 100

2. >>> century
100
3. >>> century = "hundred"
4. >>> century
'hundred'

In ➀ an integer value is assigned to the century variable and then in ➂, you are assigning a string
value to the century variable. Different values are printed in each case as seen in ➁ and ➃.

Python allows you to assign a single value to several variables simultaneously. For example,

1. >>> a = b = c =1
2. >>> a
1
3. >>> b
1
4. >>> c
1

An integer value is assigned to variables a, b and c simultaneously ➀. Values for each of these
variables are displayed as shown in ➁, ➂, and ➃.

IDENTIFIERS

An identifier is a name given to a variable, function, class, or module. Identifiers may be one or more
characters in the following format:
• Identifiers can be a combination of letters in lowercase (a to z) or uppercase (A to Z) or digits
(0 to 9) or an underscore (_). Names like myCountry, other_1 and good_morning, all are
valid examples. A Python identifier can begin with an alphabet (A – Z and a – z and _).
• An identifier cannot start with a digit but is allowed everywhere else. 1plus isinvalid, but plus1
is perfectly fine.
• Keywords cannot be used as identifiers.
• One cannot use spaces and special symbols like !, @, #, $, %, etc. as identifiers.
• An identifier can be of any length.

OPERATORS

Operators are symbols, such as +, –, =, >, and <, that perform a certain mathematical or logical
operation to manipulate data values and produce a result based on some rules. An operator
manipulates the data values called operands.

Consider the expression,

>>> 4 + 6
where 4 and 6 are operands and + is the operator.

Python language supports a wide range of operators. They are

1. Arithmetic Operators
2. Assignment Operators

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 3

 3. Comparison Operators
4. Logical Operators
5. Bitwise Operators

Arithmetic Operators
Arithmetic operators are used to executing arithmetic operations such as addition, subtraction,
division, multiplication, etc.

List of Arithmetic Operators

Operator Operator Name Description Example
+ Addition Operator Adds two operands, producing their sum. p+q=5
- Subtraction Operator Subtracts the two operands, producing p – q = −1
their difference.
* Multiplication Operator Produces the product of the operands. p*q=6
/ Division Operator Produces the quotient of its operands q / p = 1.5
where the left operand is the dividend and
the right operand is the divisor.
% Modulus Operator Divides left-hand operand by right-hand q%p=1
operand and returns a remainder.
** Exponent Operator Performs exponential (power) calculation p**q = 8
on operators.
// Floor Division Operator Returns an integral part of the quotient. 9//2 = 4 and
9.0//2.0 = 4.0
Note: The value of p is 2 and q is 3.

For example,
1. >>> 10+35 5. >>> 45/10
45 4.5
2. >>> −10+35 6. >>> 45//10.0
25 4.0
3. >>> 4*2 7. >>> 2025%10
8 5
4. >>> 4**2 8. >>> 2025//10
16 202

Assignment Operators
Assignment operators are used for assigning the values generated after evaluating the right
operand to the left operand. Assignment operation always works from right to left. Assignment
operators are either simple assignment operators or compound assignment operators. A simple
assignment is done with the equal sign (=) and simply assigns the value of its right operand to the
variable on the left. For example,
1. >>> x = 5
2. >>> x = x + 1
3. >>> x
6

In ➀ you assign an integer value of 5 to variable x. In ➁ an integer value of 1 is added to the variable
x on the right side and the value 6 after the evaluation is assigned to the variable x. The latest value
stored in variable x is displayed in ➂.
Compound assignment operators support shorthand notation for avoiding the repetition of the left-
side variable on the right side. Compound assignment operators combine assignment operator with
another operator with = being placed at the end of the original operator. For example, the statement
>>> x = x + 1

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 4

can be written in a compact form as shown below.
>>> x += 1

If you try to update a variable that doesn’t contain any value, you get an error.
1. >>> z = z + 1
NameError: name 'z' is not defined

Trying to update variable z which doesn’t contain any value results in an error because Python
evaluates the right side before it assigns a value to z ➀.

1. >>> z = 0
2. >>> x = z + 1

Before you can update a variable ➁, you have to assign a value to it ➀.

List of Assignment Operators

Operator Operator Name Description Example
= Assignment Assigns values from right side operands z = p + q assigns
to left side operand. value of p + q to z
+= Addition Adds the value of the right operand to z += p is equivalent to
Assignment the left operand and assigns the result to z=z+p
the left operand.
-= Subtraction Subtracts the value of the right operand z −= p is equivalent to
Assignment from the left operand and assigns the z=z–p
result to the left operand.
*= Multiplication Multiplies the value of the right operand z *= p is equivalent to
Assignment with the left operand and assigns the z=z*p
result to the left operand.
/= Division Divides the value of the right operand z /= p is equivalent to
Assignment with the left operand and assigns the z=z/p
result to the left operand.
**= Exponentiation Evaluates the result of raising the first z**= p is equivalent to
Assignment operand z = z ** p
to the power of the second operand.
//= Floor Division Produces an integral part of the quotient z //= p is equivalent to
Assignment of its operands where the left operand is z = z // p
the dividend and the right operand is the
divisor.
%= Remainder Computes the remainder after division z %= p is equivalent
Assignment and assigns the value to the left to
operand. z=z%p

For Example,
1. >>> p = 10 8. >>> q
2. >>> q = 12 22.0
3. >>> q += p 9. >>> q %= p
4. >>> q 10. >>> q
22 2.0
5. >>> q *= p 11. >>> q **= p
6. >>> q 12. >>> q
220 1024.0
7. >>> q /= p 13. >>> q //= p
14. >>> q
102.0

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 5

Comparison Operators
When the values of two operands are to be compared then comparison operators are used. The
output of these comparison operators is always a Boolean value, either True or False. The operands
can be Numbers or Strings or Boolean values. Strings are compared letter by letter using their ASCII
values; thus, “P” is less than “Q”, and “Aston” is greater than “Asher”.

List of Comparison Operators

Operator Operator Name Description Example
== Equal to If the values of two operands are (p == q) is not True.
equal, then the condition becomes
True.
!= Not Equal to If the values of two operands are not (p != q) is True
equal, then the condition becomes
True.
> Greater than If the value of the left operand is (p > q) is not True.
greater than the value of the right
operand, then the condition becomes
True.
< Lesser than If the value of the left operand is less (p < q) is True.
than the value of the right operand,
then the condition becomes True.
>= Greater than or If the value of the left operand is (p >= q) is not
equal to greater than or equal to the value of True.
the right operand, then the condition
becomes True.
<= Lesser than or If the value of the left operand is less (p <= q) is True.
equal to than or equal to the value of the right
operand, then the condition becomes
True.
Note: The value of p is 10 and q is 20.

Logical Operators
The logical operators are used for comparing or negating the logical values of their operands and
to return the resulting logical value. The values of the operands on which the logical operators
operate evaluate to either True or False. The result of the logical operator is always a Boolean
value, True or False.

List of Logical Operators

Operator Operator Name Description Example
and Logical AND Performs AND operation and the result p and q results in
is True when both operands are True False
or Logical OR Performs OR operation and the result is p or q results in True
True when any one of both operands is
True
not Logical NOT Reverses the operand state not p results in False
Note: The Boolean value of p is True and q is False.

Bitwise Operators
Bitwise operators treat their operands as a sequence of bits (zeroes and ones) and perform a bit-
by-bit operation. For example, the decimal number ten has a binary representation of 1010. Bitwise
operators perform their operations on such binary representations, but they return standard Python
numerical values.

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 6

List of Bitwise Operators
Operator Operator Description Example
Name
& Binary AND The result is one in each bit position for p & q = 12 (means
which the corresponding bits of both 0000 1100)
operands are 1s.
| Binary OR The result is one in each bit position for p | q = 61 (means
which the corresponding bits of either or 0011 1101)
both operands are 1s.
^ Binary XOR The result is one in each bit position for (p ^ q) = 49 (means
which the corresponding bits of either but 0011 0001)
not both operands are 1s.
~ Binary Ones Inverts the bits of its operand. (~p) = −61 (means
Complement 1100 0011 in 2’s
complement form
due to a signed
binary number.
<< Binary Left The left operands value is moved left by p << 2 = 240 (means
Shift the number of bits specified by the right 1111 0000)
operand.
>> Binary Right The left operands value is moved right by p >> 2 = 15 (means
Shift the number of bits specified by the right 0000 1111)
operand.
Note: The value of p is 60 and q is 13.

KEYWORDS

Keywords are a list of reserved words that have predefined meanings. Keywords are special
vocabulary and cannot be used by programmers as identifiers for variables, functions, constants,
or with an identifier name. Attempting to use a keyword as an identifier name will cause an error.

List of Keywords in Python

and as not
assert finally or
break for pass
class from nonlocal
continue global raise
def if return
del import try
elif in while
else is with
except lambda Yield
False True None

STATEMENTS AND EXPRESSIONS

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 7

A statement is an instruction that the Python interpreter can execute. Python program consists of a
sequence of statements. Statements are everything that can make up a line (or several lines) of
Python code. For example, z = 1 is an assignment statement.

Expression is an arrangement of values and operators which are evaluated to make a new value.
Expressions are statements as well. A value is the representation of some entity like a letter or a
number that can be manipulated by a program. A single value >>> 20 or a single variable >>> z or
a combination of variable, operator and value >>> z + 20 are all examples of expressions. An
expression, when used in interactive mode is evaluated by the interpreter, and the result is displayed
instantly. For example,

>>> 8 + 2
10

But the same expression when used in the Python program does not show any output altogether.
You need to explicitly print the result.

DATA TYPES

Numbers

Integers, floating-point numbers, and complex numbers fall under the Python numbers category.
They are defined as int, float, and complex classes in Python. Integers can be of any length; it is
only limited by the memory available. A floating-point number is accurate up to 15 decimal places.
Integer and floating points are separated by decimal points. 1 is an integer, 1.0 is a floating-point
number. Complex numbers are written in the form, x + yj, where x is the real part and y is the
imaginary part.

Boolean

Booleans may not seem very useful at first, but they are essential when you start using conditional
statements. Since a condition is just a yes-or-no question, the answer to that question is a Boolean
value, either True or False. The Boolean values, True and False are treated as reserved words.

Strings

A string consists of a sequence of one or more characters, which can include letters, numbers, and
other types of characters. A string can also contain spaces. You can use single quotes or double
quotes to represent strings and it is also called a string literal. Multiline strings can be denoted using
triple quotes, ''' or """. These are fixed values, not variables that you provide in your script.

None

None is another special data type in Python. None is frequently used to represent the absence of
a value.

INDENTATION

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 8

In Python, Programs get structured through indentation. Usually, we expect indentation from any
program code, but in Python, it is a requirement and not a matter of style. This principle makes the
code look cleaner and easier to understand and read. Any statements written under another
statement with the same indentation is interpreted to

belong to the same code block. If there is

the next statement with less indentation to the left, then it just means the end of the previous code
block.

In other words, if a code block has to be deeply nested, then the nested statements need to be
indented further to the right. In the above diagram, Block 2 and Block 3 are nested under Block 1.
Usually, four whitespaces are used for indentation and are preferred over tabs. Incorrect indentation
will result in IndentationError.

COMMENTS

Comments are an important part of any program. A comment is a text that describes what the
program or a particular part of the program is trying to do and is ignored by the Python interpreter.
Comments are used to help you and other programmers understand, maintain, and debug the
program. Python uses two types of comments: single-line comments and multiline comments.

Single Line Comment

In Python, use the hash (#) symbol to start writing a comment. Hash (#) symbol makes all text
following it on the same line into a comment. For example,
#This is a single-line Python comment

Multiline Comments

If the comment extends multiple lines, then one way of commenting on those lines is to use
hash (#) symbol at the beginning of each line. For example,
#This is
#multiline comments
#in Python

Another way of doing this is to use triple quotes, either ''' or """. These triple quotes are generally
used for multiline strings. However, they can be used as a multiline comment as well.
For example,

'''This is
multiline comment
in Python using triple quotes'''

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 9

 READING INPUT

In Python, input() function is used to gather data from the user. The syntax for input function is,
variable_name = input([prompt])

prompt is a string written inside the parenthesis that is printed on the screen. The prompt
statement indicates to the user the value that needs to be entered through the
keyboard. When the user presses Enter key, the program resumes and input returns what the
user
typed as a string. Even when the user inputs a number, it is treated as a string that should
be cast or converted to a number explicitly using the appropriate type casting function.
1. >>> person = input("What is your name?")
2. What is your name? Carrey
3. >>> person
'Carrey'
➀ the input() function prints the prompt statement on the screen (in this case "What is your
name?") indicating to the user that keyboard input is expected at that point and then it waits
for a line to be typed in. User types in his response in ➁. The input() function reads the line
from the user and converts the line into a string. As can be seen in ➂, the line typed by the
user is assigned to the person variable.

PRINT OUTPUT

The print() function allows a program to display text onto the console. The print function will print
everything as strings and anything that is not already a string is automatically converted to its string
representation. For example,
1. >>> print("Hello World!!")
Hello World!!

➀ prints the string Hello World!! onto the console. Notice that the string Hello World is enclosed
within double quotes inside the print() function.

Even though there are different ways to print values in Python, we discuss two major string formats
which are used inside the print() function to display the contents onto the console as they are less
error-prone and results in cleaner code. They are
1. str.format()
2. f-strings

str.format()
Use the str. format() method if you need to insert the value of a variable, expression, or object into
another string and display it to the user as a single string. The format() method returns a new
string with inserted values. The format() method works for all releases of Python 3.x.

The format() method uses its arguments to substitute an appropriate value for each format
code in the template.

The syntax for format() method is,

str.format(p0, p1, ..., k0=v0, k1=v1, ...)

where
p0, p1,... are called positional arguments and,
k0, k1,... are keyword arguments
with their

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 10

assigned values of v0, v1,... respectively.

Positional arguments are a list of arguments that can be accessed with an index of arguments
inside curly braces like {index}. Index value starts from zero.

Keyword arguments are a list of arguments of type keyword = value, that can be accessed with
the name of the argument inside curly braces like {keyword}.

Here, str is a mixture of text and curly braces of indexed or keyword types. The indexed or
keyword curly braces are replaced by their corresponding argument values and are displayed as a
single string to the user.

Program to Demonstrate input() and print() Functions

Output
Which country do you live in? India
I live in India

The 0 inside the curly braces {0} is the index of the first (0th) argument (here in our case, it is
variable country ➀) whose value will be inserted at that position ➁.

Program to Demonstrate the Positional Change of Indexes of Arguments

Output
The values of a are 10 and b is 20
The values of b are 20 and a is 10

You can have as many arguments as you want, as long as the indexes in curly braces have a
matching argument in the argument list ➂. {0} index gets replaced with the data value of variable
a ➀ and {1} with the data value of variable b ➁. This allows for rearranging the order of display
without changing the arguments ➃.

The keyword argument {ball} gets replaced with its assigned value ➀.

f-strings
An f-string is a string literal that is prefixed with “f”. These strings may contain replacement fields,
which are expressions enclosed within curly braces {}. The expressions are replaced with their
values. In the real world, it means that you need to specify the name of the variable inside the curly
braces to display its value. An f at the beginning of the string tells Python to allow any currently valid
variable names within the string.

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 11

Code to Demonstrate the Use of f-strings with print() Function
1. country = input("Which country do you live in?")
2. print(f"I live in {country}")

Output
Which country do you live in? India
I live in India

The input string is assigned to variable country ➀. Observe the character f prefixed before the
quotes and the variable name is specified within the curly braces ➁.

LEARNING POINTS

o Python program uses .py extension.

o The identifier is a name given to the variable and must begin with a letter or underscore
o and can include any number of letters, digits, or underscore.
o Keywords have predefined meanings.
o A variable holds a value that may change.
o Python supports the following operators:
• Arithmetic Operators
• Comparison
• Assignment
• Logical
• Bitwise
• Identity
o A statement is a unit of code that the Python interpreter can execute.
o An expression is a combination of variables, operators, values, and reserved keywords.
o The Hash (#) and Triple Quotes (''' ''') are used for commenting.
o Python provides no braces to indicate blocks of code for class and function definitions or flow control.
Blocks of code are denoted by line indentation, which is rigidly enforced.
o The print() and input() functions handle simple text output (to the screen) and input (from the keyboard).

LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Laboratory Activities
Instructions for the submission of the lab activities depend on the instructor/ professors’ preference.
Accomplish the following problem sets.
1. Write a program that gets the input and displays the following information:
• Your name
• Your address, with city, municipality, and ZIP
• Your Email Address
• Your college major
• Your Motto in life

Note: Surround the statements with your favorite special character/s. Include comments.
2. A customer in a store is purchasing five items. Write a program that asks for the price of each
item, and then displays the subtotal of the sale, the amount of sales tax, and the total. Assume
the sales tax is 7 percent. Include comments.
3. Write a program that reads an integer between 0 and 1000 and adds all the digits in the integer.
For example, if an integer is 932, the sum of all its digits is 14. Include comments.
4. Write a program that asks the user for the number of males and the number of females registered
in a class. The program should display the percentage of males and females in the class and the
total number of students in a class. Include comments.

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 12

 REFERENCES

1. Gowrishankar S. & Veena A. (2019) Introduction to Programming; CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor &
Francis Group, an Informa business; Identifiers: LCCN 2018046894 | ISBN 9780815394372 (hardback:
alk. paper) | ISBN 9781351013239 (ebook)
2. Matthes, E.(2019), Python Crash Course, 2nd Edition; Published by No Starch Press Inc; ISBN-10: 1-
59327-928-0; ISBN-13: 978-1-59327-928-8
3. Lambert, K. (2019) Fundamentals of Python: First Programs, 2nd Edition; Published by Cengage
Learning; Softbound ISBN: 978-1-337-56009-2; Loose Leaf ISBN: 978-1-337-69934-1
4. Stewart, A., (2016) Python Programming
5. Gaddis, T., (2015) Starting out with Python, 3rd Edition; Published by Pearson Limited; ISBN 10:
1292065508; ISBN 13: 978-1-29-206550-2
6. Chan, J. (2014) Learn Python in One Day and Learn It Well Python for Beginners with Hands-on Project
The only book you need to start coding in Python immediately
7. Lutz, M. (2013) Learning Python, Fifth Edition; Published by O'Reilly Media, Inc., 1005 Gravenstein
Highway North, Sebastopol, CA 95472; ISBN: 978-1-449-35573-9
8. Liang, Y. Daniel (2013) Introduction to Programming Using Python; Pearson Education, Inc., publishing
as Prentice Hall.; ISBN 13: 978-0-13-274718-9; ISBN 10: 0-13-274718-9;
9. Chun, W. (2006) Core Python Programming, Second Edition; Published by Prentice Hall; ISBN-10: 0-
13-226993-7; ISBN-13: 978-0-13-226993-3

Prepared by:
PATRICK V. MOLE, MIT
Faculty, College Information
and Technology Education

Module 2 – Basic Elements of Python Part 1 | 13