astrophysics project and need the explanation and answer to help me learn.
Introduction to Python Programming
In this full course, you will learn the basics of Python programming. The course is created by Beau Carnes from FreeCodeCamp.org, who has previously created one of the most popular JavaScript courses on YouTube and many Python tutorials. You do not need any previous programming experience to follow along, and all you need to code in Python is a web browser.
Requirements:
Introduction to Python Programming
In this full course, you will learn the basics of Python programming. The course is created by Beau Carnes from FreeCodeCamp.org, who has previously created one of the most popular JavaScript courses on YouTube and many Python tutorials. You do not need any previous programming experience to follow along, and all you need to code in Python is a web browser.
Python is considered one of the most popular programming languages in the world and is only growing in popularity. It excels in a wide variety of scenarios, such as shell scripting, task automation, and web development. It is also the language of choice for data analysis and machine learning, and can adapt to create games and work with embedded devices.
The course jumps right into coding, and to get started quickly, it uses Replit, an online IDE that allows users to code and run programs in a variety of different languages all in a web browser. After the first project, the course goes into more detail about each of the main features of Python. The final section involves using what you have been learning to code a blackjack game, with Beau guiding you every step of the way.
Throughout the course, there will be a little repetition of some of the key Python programming concepts to make sure you have a deep understanding of the language.
Creating a Rock Paper Scissors Game with Replit
The course starts by creating a simple rock paper scissors game using Replit. Beau shows how to create a variable with Python, and then creates a variable called player choice and sets it equal to rock. He then creates another variable called computer choice and sets it equal to paper.
Beau then introduces the concept of functions, which are sets of code that only run when they are called. He shows how to put the code into a function using indentation, and creates a function called get choices that assigns the two variables and also includes a return statement.
Here is a Python function that returns the player’s choice in a rock-paper-scissors game:
def get_choices(): player_choice = “rock” return player_choice
To change the function to return the computer’s choice instead, simply change the return statement:
def get_choices(): computer_choice = “rock” return computer_choice
Next, the tutorial demonstrates how to create a new function and call it to print a greeting to the console:
def greeting(): return “hi”response = greeting()print(response)
The tutorial then prompts the reader to modify the code to call the get_choices function and print the result:
choices = get_choices()print(choices)
The tutorial also introduces dictionaries in Python and demonstrates how to create one:
my_dict = {“name”: “Bow”, “color”: “blue”}
The tutorial then modifies the get_choices function to return a dictionary containing both the player’s and computer’s choices:
def get_choices(): player_choice = input(“Enter a choice: rock, paper, or scissors “) choices = {“player”: player_choice, “computer”: “rock”} return choices
Finally, the tutorial updates the code to get the player’s actual choice from user input:
def get_choices(): player_choice = input(“Enter a choice: rock, paper, or scissors “) choices = {“player”: player_choice, “computer”: “rock”} return choices
In this section of code, the player’s input is stored in a variable for later use in the program. The dictionary used in this code is not necessary for the final version. Next, the program imports the random library to allow for random selection of options. Lists are also introduced to store multiple items in a single variable. The function `get_choices` is tested and then deleted since it is no longer needed. A new function called `check_win` is created with arguments `player` and `computer`. An if statement is introduced to execute different code depending on certain conditions. If `player` equals `computer`, the function returns the string “it’s a tie”. Otherwise, it does not return anything.
Code:
# Player input stored in variable player_choice = input(“Enter rock, paper, or scissors: “) # Importing random library for random selection import random # Creating list to store multiple items in a single variable options = [“rock”, “paper”, “scissors”] # Selecting random item from the list using the random library computer_choice = random.choice(options) # Creating function with arguments player and computer def check_win(player, computer): # If statement to execute different code depending on conditions if player == computer: return “It’s a tie” # Code to be executed if condition is not met else: pass
Key Takeaways:
Importing libraries allows for access to more features without writing additional code.
Lists are used to store multiple items in a single variable.
Functions can receive data called arguments, which are passed in when the function is called.
An if statement allows a program to execute different code depending on certain conditions.
Concatenating Strings with Python
You can combine strings with other strings or variables using the plus operator. For example:
print(“You chose ” + player + “. Computer chose ” + computer)
Another way to combine strings and variables is using an f-string. To do this, simply put an “f” before the string and use curly braces to add variables:
age = 25 print(f”Gem is {age} years old.”)
Try updating the above code to use an f-string instead of concatenation.
Checking the Winner
Use the function check_win(player, computer) to determine the winner. For example:
check_win(“rock”, “paper”)
This will print out the winner (“Computer wins!”) based on the player and computer’s choices.
Using Else and Elif Statements
Use else and elif statements to check different win conditions. For example:
if age >= 18: print(“You’re an adult.”) elif age > 12: print(“You’re a teenager.”) else: print(“You’re a child.”)
Note that once a condition is true, the code will not check the remaining conditions.
Refactoring Code with Nested If Statements
Use nested if statements to make code more understandable. For example:
if player == “rock”: if computer == “scissors”: return “Rock smashes scissors! You win!” elif computer == “paper”: return “Paper covers rock! You lose!”
Try refactoring this code to avoid using the and operator.
Creating a Rock-Paper-Scissors Game in Python
In this section, we will walk you through how to create a simple rock-paper-scissors game in Python. We will start by creating a function that will get the player’s and computer’s choices. Then, we will create another function that will check who wins. Finally, we will call both functions and play the game.
Get Choices Function
The get choices function will randomly select the computer’s choice and ask the player to input their choice. We will use the random module to randomly select the computer’s choice. The function will return a dictionary with the player’s and computer’s choices.
import randomdef get_choices(): choices = {‘player’: ”, ‘computer’: ”} options = [‘rock’, ‘paper’, ‘scissors’] choices[‘computer’] = random.choice(options) choices[‘player’] = input(“Enter your choice (rock/paper/scissors): “) return choices
Check Win Function
The check win function will take in the player’s and computer’s choices and determine who wins. We will use a series of if and elif statements to check each possible combination. The function will return a string with the result.
def check_win(player_choice, computer_choice): if player_choice == computer_choice: return “It’s a tie!” elif player_choice == ‘rock’: if computer_choice == ‘scissors’: return “Rock smashes scissors, you win!” else: return “Paper covers rock, you lose!” elif player_choice == ‘paper’: if computer_choice == ‘rock’: return “Paper covers rock, you win!” else: return “Scissors cuts paper, you lose!” elif player_choice == ‘scissors’: if computer_choice == ‘paper’: return “Scissors cuts paper, you win!” else: return “Rock smashes scissors, you lose!”
Play the Game
Now that we have both functions, we can call them and play the game. We will create a variable called “choices” and assign it the result of calling the get choices function. We will then create another variable called “result” and assign it the result of calling the check win function with the player’s and computer’s choices. Finally, we will print the result.
choices = get_choices()result = check_win(choices[‘player’], choices[‘computer’])print(result)
Conclusion
By following these steps, we have created a simple rock-paper-scissors game in Python. We encourage you to play around with the code and try to make improvements or add new features. In the next section, we will cover more advanced Python concepts.
Getting Started with Python
Python is a programming language that can be run on different platforms. To get started, you can download Python on your specific computer by following the instructions on the platform’s website. There are different ways to run Python programs, including using an interactive prompt or Visual Studio Code.
Interactive Prompt
To run Python using an interactive prompt, open your terminal and type “python” or “python 3”. This will bring up the interactive prompt where you can start coding in Python. You can also enter most Python commands right into the prompt. To quit, type “quit()”.
Visual Studio Code
Visual Studio Code is another platform to run Python. To get started, download Visual Studio Code and install the Python extension. Once installed, create a new file and start coding in Python. You can run the program by clicking the play button.
Core Features of Python
In this section, we will cover the basic commands of Python. We will start with variables, which can be created by assigning a value to a label using the equal sign. Variable names can be composed of characters, numbers, and an underscore character, but cannot start with a number. Python also has keywords that cannot be used as variable names.
Expressions and Statements
Expressions are codes that return a value, while statements are operations on a value. A program is formed by a series of statements, each put on its own line. You can use a semicolon to have more than one statement on a single line.
Comments
In Python, everything after a hash mark is ignored. This is called a comment. You can also put in inline comments. The cool thing about most code editors is that they make comments gray, so you know that they’re not part of the actual program.
Indentation and Blocks
Indentation is very meaningful in Python. You can’t randomly indent things. Indentation has a special meaning, and if you try to run a program with incorrect indentation, you will see an error.
Everything indented belongs to a block like a control statement or a conditional block or a function or a class body. We’ll be talking more about these different blocks.
Data Types
Python has several built-in types, including:
Strings: anything surrounded by quotation marks
Integers: represented using the int class
Floating point numbers: represented using the float class
You can check the type of a variable by using the type function. You can also create a variable of a specific type by using the class constructor. You can convert from one data type to another by using the class constructor. This is called casting.
Operators
There are several types of operators in Python:
Arithmetic operators: used to do math
Comparison operators: used to compare values
Logical operators: used to combine conditions
Bitwise operators: used to compare binary values
Special operators: is and in, among others
The assignment operator is used to assign a value to a variable or to assign a variable value to another variable. The plus operator can also be used to concatenate string values.
Arithmetic Operators and Assignment Operator
Arithmetic operators like plus, minus, multiplication and division can be combined with the assignment operator to update the value of a variable. For example:
age = 8age += 8print(age) # Output: 16
This is equivalent to age = age + 8. Other arithmetic operators like * and / can also be used with the assignment operator.
Comparison Operators
Comparison operators are used to compare two values and return a boolean value (True or False). The operators include:
==: equal to
!=: not equal to
>: greater than
<: less than
>=: greater than or equal to
<=: less than or equal to
A trick to remember which symbol is for greater than or less than is to tilt the less than symbol (<) to the left, and it looks like a lowercase "L".
Boolean Operators
Boolean operators are used to combine boolean values and return a boolean value. The operators include:
not: returns the opposite boolean value
and: returns True if both operands are True
or: returns True if either operand is True
Ternary Operator
The ternary operator allows you to define a conditional in a single line. Here's an example:
def is_adult(age): return True if age > 18 else False
Strings
A string in Python is a series of characters enclosed in quotes. You can also concatenate strings using the plus operator and append to a string using the plus equal operator. A string can also be multiline when defined with a special syntax using three quotes.
Working with Strings in Python
Strings are sequences of characters enclosed in quotes. They can be either single or double quotes, as long as they match at the beginning and ending. Strings have built-in methods such as upper(), lower(), and title() that modify the string and return a new one. Other common methods include isalpha(), isalnum(), isdigit(), islower(), isupper(), startswith(), endswith(), replace(), split(), strip(), find(), and len().
Note that these methods return a new modified string and do not alter the original one. Also, the in operator can be used to check if a substring is contained in a string. Escaping is a way to add special characters into a string, and it can be done using the backslash character. To get a specific character in a string, use square brackets and provide the index starting from zero. Negative indexes count from the end of the string. Slicing can be used to get a range of characters, and it is done using the colon character.
upper(): makes all characters uppercase
lower(): makes all characters lowercase
title(): makes each word start with a capital letter
isalpha(): checks if the string contains only characters
isalnum(): checks if the string contains characters or digits and is not empty
isdigit(): checks if the string contains only digits
islower(): checks if all characters are lowercase
isupper(): checks if all characters are uppercase
startswith(): checks if the string starts with a specific substring
endswith(): checks if the string ends with a specific substring
replace(): replaces part of the string with another
split(): splits the string into a list of substrings using a specific separator
strip(): removes whitespace from the beginning and ending of the string
find(): finds the position of a substring in the string
len(): returns the length of the string
To escape a character within a string, use the backslash character. Use the in operator to check if a substring is contained in a string. To get a specific character, use square brackets and provide the index starting from zero. Negative indexes count from the end of the string. Slicing can be used to get a range of characters, and it is done using the colon character.
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