IT2409

Expressions and Assignment Statements

In Python, expressions and assignment statements are fundamental to programming. An expression produces
a value, while an assignment statement stores that value in a variable. These concepts are essential for writing
logic, performing calculations, and managing data effectively.
Expressions
An expression is a combination of values, variables, operators, and function calls that result in a computed
value. Expressions are crucial because they form the building blocks of logic in programming. Every expression
returns a value that can be used within a program.
An expression is any valid combination of operands (values or variables) and operators (such as +, -, *, /). It is
evaluated by Python to produce a value. Expressions can be as simple as a single number (10) or as complex
as a mathematical formula involving multiple operations and function calls.
Example (Simple Expression):
x = 10 + 5 # 10 and 5 are values, + is an operator
print(x) # Output: 15
Example (Complex Expression):
x = (10 + 5) * 2 - 3 / 1.5 # Uses parentheses, arithmetic operators, and division
print(x) # Output: 27.0
Expressions can also involve function calls:
def square(n):
return n * n
result = square(4) + 10 # Calls the square function and adds 10
print(result) # Output: 26
Types of Expressions
Arithmetic Expressions
These involve mathematical operations such as addition (+), subtraction (-), multiplication (*), division (/), and
exponentiation (**). These expressions are used in scenarios requiring numerical computations.
Examples:
result = (5 + 3) * 2
print(result) # Output: 16

total_cost = item_price * quantity + shipping_fee

Relational Expressions (or Comparison Expressions)
These evaluate to True or False using comparison operators. These utilize comparison operators like equal
to (==), not equal to (!=), greater than (>), less than (<), greater than or equal to (>=), and less than or equal
to (<=). These expressions are essential in decision-making processes, such as conditional statements and
loops.
Examples:
print(10 > 5) # Output: True
print(4 == 5) # Output: False

if user_age >= 18:

print("Eligible to vote")

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Logical Expressions (or Boolean Expressions)

These use logical operators (and, or, not) to combine Boolean values. These are pivotal in constructing
complex conditional statements.
Examples:
x = (5 > 3) and (10 > 8)
print(x) # Output: True

if is_member and has_paid_fee:

grant_access()
Bitwise Expressions
These manipulate bits directly using bitwise operators (&, |, ^, ~, <<, >>). These perform operations at the
binary level using operators like AND (&), OR (|), XOR (^), NOT (~), left shift (<<), and right shift (>>). These
expressions are commonly used in low-level programming, such as setting flags or manipulating binary data.
Example:
a = 5 # Binary: 0101
b = 3 # Binary: 0011
print(a & b) # Output: 1 (Binary: 0001)
Assignment Statements
An assignment statement assigns a value to a variable using the = operator. Assignment statements allow the
storage of values in named memory locations (variables). The left-hand side of the assignment operator (=) is
the variable name, and the right-hand side is the value to be stored.
Example (Simple Assignment):
x = 5 # x is assigned the value 5
name = "Alice" # name is assigned the string "Alice"
Example (Multiple Assignments):
a, b, c = 1, 2, 3
print(a, b, c) # Output: 1 2 3
Values can also be swapped without using a temporary variable:
x, y = 10, 20
x, y = y, x # Swapping values
print(x, y) # Output: 20 10
Augmented Assignment Operators
Python provides augmented assignment operators that simplify modifying variables. It provides a concise
syntax to update variable values by combining an arithmetic operation with an assignment operator, reducing
redundancy in code. For example:
x = 10
x += 5 # Equivalent to: x = x + 5
print(x) # Output: 15

x *= 2 # Equivalent to: x = x * 2
print(x) # Output: 30

x -= 10 # Equivalent to: x = x - 10
print(x) # Output: 20

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Here is the list of augmented assignment operators:

Operator Description Example Equivalent To
+= Addition a += b a = a + b
-= Subtraction a -= b a = a - b
*= Multiplication a *= b a = a * b
/= Division a /= b a = a / b
//= Floor Division a //= b a = a // b
%= Modulus (Remainder) a %= b a = a % b
**= Exponentiation a **= b a = a ** b
&= Bitwise AND a &= b a = a & b
|= Bitwise OR a |= b a = a | b
^= Bitwise XOR a ^= b a = a ^ b
<<= Bitwise Left Shift a <<= b a = a << b
>>= Bitwise Right Shift a >>= b a = a >> b

A sample program incorporating expressions and assignment statements.

# Assigning values to variables
x = 10
y = 5

# Performing arithmetic operations

sum_result = x + y
product_result = x * y

# Using a relational expression

is_x_greater = x > y

# Using a logical expression

is_x_positive_and_greater = (x > 0) and (x > y)

# Using an augmented assignment

x += 3

# Printing results
print("Sum:", sum_result)
print("Product:", product_result)
print("Is x greater than y?", is_x_greater)
print("Is x positive and greater than y?", is_x_positive_and_greater)
print("Updated x:", x)
Output:
Sum: 15
Product: 50
Is x greater than y? True
Is x positive and greater than y? True
Updated x: 13

References:
Downey, A. (2020). Think Python: How to think like a computer scientist (2nd ed.). O'Reilly Media.
Tenkanen, H., Heikinheimo, V., & Whipp, D. (2020). Introduction to Python for geographic data analysis.

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