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7. Variables (labo)

The document explains the concept of variables in computer programming, specifically in Python, detailing how to create, assign, and manipulate them. It emphasizes the importance of variables for storing different data types, updating values, and enhancing code efficiency through the use of f-strings. Additionally, it covers variable naming conventions and provides examples for practical understanding.

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2 views

7. Variables (labo)

The document explains the concept of variables in computer programming, specifically in Python, detailing how to create, assign, and manipulate them. It emphasizes the importance of variables for storing different data types, updating values, and enhancing code efficiency through the use of f-strings. Additionally, it covers variable naming conventions and provides examples for practical understanding.

Uploaded by

dnabc04
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 7

L8 : Variables

In computer programming, variables are used to store, process, and manipulate data. So, let's
say you wanted to store 28 in the variable age, this is what you would do:

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age = 28
So if you used print() with age as an argument, you would get the value that you assigned to
that variable.

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print(age)
With age = 28 you are telling Python to create a variable named age and use it to store the
value 28. However, you can change the value assigned to any variable you previously created.
For instance, you can assign a value of 5 to age using the following code:

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age = 5
So if you display age, you will get 5 instead of 28.

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print(age)
Variables store numbers, strings and other type of data
Variables can be used to store floating point numbers, integers, strings, and other types of
data. For instance, you can create a variable name and assign it the string "Otto", or a variable
gnome_height and assign it the floating point number 12.7.

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name = "Otto"
gnome_height = 12.7
You can use variables within f-strings to make your output more readable. For example, you
can print the value assigned to age along with the string "Age: " so that anyone reading the
display will understand what the value represents.

Here’s how you can do it:

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print(f"Age: {age}")
As another example, let's use f-strings to display the values assigned to name and
gnome_height.

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print(f"Name: {name}")
print(f"Gnome height: {gnome_height}")
Important: Variables are case-sensitive, so Gnome_height and gnome_height are not the
same. To see this, you can run the next cell where you will get an error message.

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print(f"Gnome height: {Gnome_height}")


Variables help you store values that constantly change
Take a game where the score starts at zero. In the next cell, you create a variable score, assign
it the value of 0, and display the current score.

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score = 0 # now score is 0


print(score)
When the score increases by 50 points, you can update the variable by using its previous value
and adding 50.

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score = score + 50 # now score is 0 + 50 which is 50
print(score)
In a similar way, when the score increases by 100 points, the variable score can be updated by
adding 100 to the previous value stored in score.

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score = score + 100 # now score is 100 + 50 which is 150


print(score)
And, after scoring an extra 300 points, the variable score is updated by adding 300 to the
previous value stored in score.

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score = score + 300 # now score is 150 + 300 which is 450


print(score)
So at the end, the variable score stores the most updated score value.

You can print the final score using an f-string as shown in the cell below:

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print(f"Your final score was: {score}") # prints 450


Variable names restrictions
To demonstrate an important fact about variable names in Python, try to run the code below.

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my score = 450
Now, ask the chatbot why that code didn't work. You can use the prompt suggested here.
🤖 Use the Chatbot: Why doesn't this code work? my score = 450

Variables allow you to code efficiently!


Recall the dog age example that you saw in previous lessons. Assuming that Otto is 49 years
old, you can display his dog age by using print(49 / 7).

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print(49 / 7)
Using f-strings so that it is clear what you are displaying, you would use code similar to the
one in the cell below.

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print(f"Otto's age in dog years is {49 / 7}")


Alternatively, now that you have seen how variables work, you can compute Otto's dog age
and assign it to the variable dog_age.

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dog_age = 49 / 7
You can see how this would be an advantage if you consider the following scenario. Let's say
you want to display an f-string with Otto's dog age multiple times. Without using variables,
you would need to compute his dog age as many times as you refer to it.

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print(f"""Otto's dog age is {49/7}. So a dog that's about


{49/7} would be the same age as Otto. Any dog born about {49/7}
years ago would be in the same stage of life as Otto.""")
If Otto became a year older, you would need to change the values in each of the curly braces
to 50/7. Instead, if you used an f-string with the dog_age variable as the one below:

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print(f"""Otto's dog age is {dog_age}. So a dog that's about
{dog_age} would be the same age as Otto. Any dog born about {dog_age}
years ago would be in the same stage of life as Otto.""")
You will only need to update dog_age with Otto's new equivalent dog age:

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dog_age = 50/7
And use the same f-string that you used before without editing. By defining a variable once,
you can use it in multiple places, which makes computer programs much more efficient.

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print(f"""Otto's dog age is {dog_age}. So a dog that's about


{dog_age} would be the same age as Otto. Any dog born about {dog_age}
years ago would be in the same stage of life as Otto.""")
As another example, you can replace the name "Otto" with the variable name in curly braces.

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print(f"""{name}'s dog age is {dog_age}. So a dog that's about


{dog_age} would be the same age as {name}. Any dog born about {dog_age}
years ago would be in the same stage of life as {name}.""")
This way, you can change Otto's name to his first and last name:

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name = "Otto Matic"


And use the f-string where the change is reflected in all places where the variable name
appears.
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print(f"""{name}'s dog age is {dog_age}. So a dog that's about


{dog_age} would be the same age as {name}. Any dog born about {dog_age}
years ago would be in the same stage of life as {name}.""")
Extra practice
Try the exercises below to practice the concepts from this lesson. Read the comments in each
cell with the instructions for each exercise.

Feel free to use the chatbot if you need help.

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# Create a variable called 'my_name' and assign it the value of your name as a string.
# Then print out a greeting using the variable, like "Hello, Andrew!"
my_name =
print()
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# Enter your favorite number below and store it in a variable called 'fav_num'.
# Print out a message telling you what your favorite number plus 10 is.
fav_num =
print(f"Your favorite number plus 10 is {}")
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# Create two variables, 'countries_visited' and 'countries_to_visit' and assign them the number
of
# countries you've been to and the number of countries you hope to visit. Then complete the
print statement.

print(f"""I have visited {} countries. I plan to visit {} more countries,


and when I'm done I will have visited {} countries.""")

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