CS-114 Fundamentals of

Programming
Basic Elements of Python Programs
Lecture 3
 Recap
• A computer is a universal information-processing machine, which can carry out
any process that can be described in sufficient detail
• The process of creating software is called programming
• A basic functional view of a computer system comprises a central processing
unit (CPU), a main memory, a secondary memory, and input and output devices
• Programs are written using a formal notation known as a programming
language
• There are many different languages, but all share the property of having a
precise syntax (form) and semantics (meaning)
• Computer hardware only understands a very low-level language known as
machine language
 Recap

• Programs are usually written using human-oriented high-level

languages such as Python
• A high-level language must either be compiled or interpreted in order
for the computer to understand it
• Python is an interpreted language
• One way to learn about Python is to use an interactive shell for
experimentation
• Different types of errors: Syntax, Runtime and Logical
 Today…
• Last Session:
• Motivation
• Introduction to Hardware Basics & Programming Languages
• Writing Simple Python Commands

• Today’s Session:
• Basic Elements of Python Programs: Literals, Assignments, Datatype Conversion,
Identifiers, and Expressions

• Announcement:
• Assignment
Elements Of A Program
 The Difference Between Brackets, Braces,
and Parentheses
• ( ) Parentheses
• [ ] Brackets
• { } Braces
Simple Expressions
• 1. 2300 + 20
• 2. 4800 / 12
• 3. 11 * 19
Values & Types
• A value is one of the basic things a program works with.
• It can be a letter or a number.
• Example: Integer
• 14
• ‘Hello !! ’ String
• 13.235
Float
• Every value in Python has a type.
Values & Types
• Printing Values:
• Syntax:

print (value)

Examples:
print (“Python is fun”) Python is fun
print (3.14) 3.14
Values & Types

• Confirm the type from the interpreter:

• Syntax:
• type(value)
• Examples:
• >>> type (“Hello String”)
• >>> type (3.14)
• >>> type (130)
Values & Types

• Self-Review Exercise:
Determine the type of the following value:

• >>> type (‘17.0’)

It’s a String….
Values & Types

• When you have operands of two different types i.e integer

and float result would automatically be converted to float.

• E.g.
• 2 + 4.0 = 6.0
• 15.0 / 3=???
Variables

• Variables are reserved memory locations to store values.

• Creating a variable means you reserve some space in memory.

• The equal sign (=) is used to assign values to variables.

• 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 value stored in the variable. 
Variables
Syntax:

Variable = Value

• Example:
•  name = “Moosa”
• miles = 25.6
 Display the value of a variable

Syntax(print value):
Print (variable_name)

Syntax(To check variable type):

type(variable_name)
Updating Variable Values Augmented Assignment

• X = X + 1;
X 10 + 1
= 11
Variable names and keywords
1. Choose meaningful names for variables.
2. They can contain both letters and numbers, but they cannot start with a
number.
3. It is legal to use uppercase letters, but it is a good idea to begin variable names
with a lowercase letter.
4. The underscore character (_) can appear in a variable name.
5. Variable names can start with an underscore character, but generally it should
be avoided.
6. For variables with an illegal name, interpreter gives a syntax error.
7. Keywords can not be used as variable name.
Self-Review Exercise

56House = “This is the 56th house”

• number1 =
268

amount$= 56.89

pass = 10
Variable names and keywords

Keywords:
The words reserved by the
python language.
 Literals
• In the following example, the parameter values passed to the print
function are all technically called literals
• More precisely, “Hello” and “Programming is fun!” are called textual literals,
while 3 and 2.3 are called numeric literals
>>> print("Hello")
Hello
>>> print("Programming is fun!")
Programming is fun!
>>> print(3)
3
>>> print(2.3)
2.3
 Simple Assignment Statements
• A literal is used to indicate a specific value, which can be assigned to
a variable

>>> x = 2
 x is a variable and 2 is its value >>> print(x)
2
>>> x = 2.3
>>> print(x)
2.3
 Simple Assignment Statements
• A literal is used to indicate a specific value, which can be assigned to
a variable

>>> x = 2
 x is a variable and 2 is its value >>> print(x)
2
 x can be assigned different values; >>> x = 2.3
hence, it is called a variable >>> print(x)
2.3
 Simple Assignment Statements: Box View
• A simple way to view the effect of an assignment is to assume that
when a variable changes, its old value is replaced

>>> x = 2 x = 2.3
Before After
>>> print(x)
2 x 2 x 2.3
>>> x = 2.3
>>> print(x)
2.3
 Simple Assignment Statements: Actual View
• Python assignment statements are actually slightly different from the
“variable as a box” model
• In Python, values may end up anywhere in memory, and variables are used to
refer to them
x = 2.3
>>> x = 2
Before After
>>> print(x) What will
2 2 happen to
x 2 x
>>> x = 2.3 value 2?
>>> print(x)
2.3
2.3
 Garbage Collection
• Interestingly, as a Python programmer you do not have to worry about
computer memory getting filled up with old values when new values are
assigned to variables
After
Memory location
• Python will automatically clear old
values out of memory in a process
known as garbage collection
x 2
X will be automatically
reclaimed by the
garbage collector
2.3
 Assigning Input
• So far, we have been using values specified by programmers and printed or
assigned to variables
• How can we let users (not programmers) input values?

• In Python, input is accomplished via an assignment statement combined

with a built-in function called input
<variable> = input(<prompt>)

• When Python encounters a call to input, it prints <prompt> (which is a

string literal) then pauses and waits for the user to type some text and press
the <Enter> key
 Assigning Input
• Here is a sample interaction with the Python interpreter:

>>> name = input("Enter your name: ")

Enter your name: shah
>>> name
‘shah'
>>> 

• Notice that whatever the user types is then stored as a string

• What happens if the user inputs a number?
 Assigning Input
• Here is a sample interaction with the Python interpreter:

>>> number = input("Enter an expression: ")

Enter a number: 3+1
>>> number
Still a string! '3+1'
>>> 

• How can we force an input number to be stored as a number and not as

a string?
• We can use the built-in eval function, which can be “wrapped around” the
input function
 Assigning Input
• Here is a sample interaction with the Python interpreter:

>>> number = eval(input("Enter a

number: "))
Enter a number: 3+1
>>> number
Now an int
4
(will execute the Exp)!
>>> 
 Assigning Input
• Here is a sample interaction with the Python interpreter:

>>> number = eval(input("Enter a

number: "))
Enter a number: 3.7+1
>>> number
And now a float
4.7
(answer)!
>>> 
 Assigning Input
• Here is another sample interaction with the Python interpreter:

>>> number = eval(input("Enter an equation: "))

Enter an equation: 3 + 2
>>> number
5
>>> 

The eval function will evaluate this formula and

return a value, which is then assigned to the variable “number”
 Datatype Conversion
• Besides, we can convert the string output of the input function into an
integer or a float using the built-in int and float functions
>>> number = int(input("Enter a number: "))
Enter a number: 3
>>> number
An integer
3
(no single quotes)!
>>> 
 Datatype Conversion
• Besides, we can convert the string output of the input function into an
integer or a float using the built-in int and float functions
>>> number = float(input("Enter a number: "))
Enter a number: 3.7
>>> number
A float
3.7
(no single quotes)!
>>> 
 Datatype Conversion
• As a matter of fact, we can do various kinds of conversions between
strings, integers and floats using the built-in int, float, and str functions
>>> x = 10 >>> y = "20" >>> z = 30.0
>>> float(x) >>> float(y) >>> int(z)
10.0 20.0 30
>>> str(x) >>> int(y) >>> str(z)
'10' 20 '30.0'
>>> >>> >>> 

integer  float string  float float  integer

integer  string string  integer float  string
 Simultaneous Assignment
• Python allows us also to assign multiple values to multiple variables all
at the same time
>>> x, y = 2, 3
>>> x
2
>>> y
3
>>> 
 Simultaneous Assignment
• Suppose you have two variables x and y, and you want to swap their
values (i.e., you want the value stored in x to be in y and vice versa)

>>> x = 2
>>> y = 3
>>> x = y
>>> y = x
>>> x
3
X CANNOT be done with
two simple assignments

>>> y
3
 Simultaneous Assignment
• Suppose you have two variables x and y, and you want to swap their
values (i.e., you want the value stored in x to be in y and vice versa)
>>> x = 2
Thus far, we have been using >>> y = 3
different names for >>> temp = x CAN be done with
variables. These names >>> x = y three simple assignments,
are technically called
identifiers
>>> y = temp
>>> x
 but more efficiently with
simultaneous assignment
3
>>> y
2
>>> 
 Identifiers
• Python has some rules about how identifiers can be formed
• Every identifier must begin with a letter or underscore, which may be
followed by any sequence of letters, digits, or underscores
>>> x1 = 10
>>> x2 = 20
>>> y_effect = 1.5
>>> celsius = 32
>>> 2celsius
  File "<stdin>", line 1
    2celsius
           ^
SyntaxError: invalid syntax
 Identifiers
• Python has some rules about how identifiers can be formed
• Identifiers are case-sensitive

>>> x = 10
>>> X = 5.7
>>> print(x)
10
>>> print(X)
5.7
 Identifiers
• Python has some rules about how identifiers can be formed
• Some identifiers are part of Python itself (they are called reserved words or
keywords) and cannot be used by programmers as ordinary identifiers
False class finally is return
None continue for lambda try
True def from nonlocal while
and del global not with
as elif if or yield
assert else import pass
break except in raise

Python Keywords
 Identifiers
• Python has some rules about how identifiers can be formed
• Some identifiers are part of Python itself (they are called reserved words or
keywords) and cannot be used by programmers as ordinary identifiers

>>> for = 4
  File "<stdin>", line 1
An example…     for = 4
    ^
SyntaxError: invalid syntax
 Expressions
• You can produce new data (numeric or text) values in your program
using expressions
>>> x = 2 + 3
 This is an expression that uses the >>> print(x)
addition operator 5
>>> print(5 * 7)
35
>>> print("5" + "7")
57
 Expressions
• You can produce new data (numeric or text) values in your program
using expressions
>>> x = 2 + 3
 This is an expression that uses the >>> print(x)
addition operator 5
>>> print(5 * 7)
 This is another expression that uses the 35
multiplication operator >>> print("5" + "7")
57
 Expressions
• You can produce new data (numeric or text) values in your program
using expressions
>>> x = 2 + 3
 This is an expression that uses the >>> print(x)
addition operator 5
>>> print(5 * 7)
 This is another expression that uses the 35
multiplication operator >>> print("5" + "7")
57
 This is yet another expression that uses the
addition operator but to concatenate (or glue)
strings together
 Expressions
• You can produce new data (numeric or text) values in your program
using expressions

>>> x = 6 >>> print(x*y)

>>> y = 2 12
>>> print(x - y) >>> print(x**y)
Another 4 Yet another 36
example… >>> print(x/y) example… >>> print(x%y)
3.0 0
>>> print(x//y) >>> print(abs(-x))
3 6
Expressions: Summary of Operators
Operator Operation
+ Addition
- Subtraction
* Multiplication
/ Float Division
** Exponentiation
abs() Absolute Value
// Integer Division
% Remainder

Python Built-In Numeric Operations

 Explicit and Implicit Data Type Conversion
• Data conversion can happen in two ways in Python
1. Explicit Data Conversion (we saw this earlier with the int, float, and str
built-in functions)

2. Implicit Data Conversion

• Takes place automatically during run time between ONLY numeric values
• E.g., Adding a float and an integer will automatically result in a float value
• E.g., Adding a string and an integer (or a float) will result in an error since
string is not numeric
• Applies type promotion to avoid loss of information
• Conversion goes from integer to float (e.g., upon adding a float and an
integer) and not vice versa so as the fractional part of the float is not lost
 Implicit Data Type Conversion: Examples

>>> print(2 + 3.4)

 The result of an expression that involves
5.4
a float number alongside (an) integer
>>> print( 2 + 3)
number(s) is a float number
5
>>> print(9/5 * 27 + 32)
80.6
>>> print(9//5 * 27 + 32)
59
>>> print(5.9 + 4.2)
10.100000000000001
>>> 
 Implicit Data Type Conversion: Examples

>>> print(2 + 3.4)

 The result of an expression that involves
5.4
a float number alongside (an) integer
>>> print( 2 + 3)
number(s) is a float number
5
>>> print(9/5 * 27 + 32)
 The result of an expression that involves
80.6
values of the same data type will not result
>>> print(9//5 * 27 + 32)
in any conversion
59
>>> print(5.9 + 4.2)
10.100000000000001
>>> 
 Modules
• One problem with entering code interactively into a Python shell is
that the definitions are lost when we quit the shell
• If we want to use these definitions again, we have to type them all over again!

• To this end, programs are usually created by typing definitions into a

separate file called a module or script
• This file is saved on disk so that it can be used over and over again

• A Python module file is just a text file with a .py extension, which can
be created using any program for editing text (e.g., notepad or vim)
 Programming Environments and IDLE
• A special type of software known as a programming environment
simplifies the process of creating modules/programs

• A programming environment helps programmers write programs and

includes features such as automatic indenting, color highlighting, and
interactive development

• The standard Python distribution includes a programming

environment called IDLE that you can use for working on the
programs of this course
 Summary
• Programs are composed of statements that are built from identifiers and
expressions

• Identifiers are names

• They begin with an underscore or letter which can be followed by a combination
of letter, digit, and/or underscore characters
• They are case sensitive

• Expressions are the fragments of a program that produce data

• They can be composed of literals, variables, and operators
 Summary
• A literal is a representation of a specific value (e.g., 3 is a literal
representing the number three)

• A variable is an identifier that stores a value, which can change (hence,

the name variable)

• Operators are used to form and combine expressions into more complex
expressions (e.g., the expression x + 3 * y combines two expressions
together using the + and * operators)
 Summary
• In Python, assignment of a value to a variable is done using the equal sign (i.e.,
=)

• Using assignments, programs can get inputs from users and manipulate them
internally

• Python allows simultaneous assignments, which are useful for swapping values
of variables

• Datatype conversion involves converting implicitly and explicitly between

various datatypes, including integer, float, and string
 Next Lecture…
• Functions- Part I