Data structures in Python
Python is a high-level programming language that supports a variety of data structures. Data structures are fundamental to programming as they provide a way to organize, store, and manipulate data efficiently and easily. In this chapter, we will discuss four essential data structures in Python: lists, tuples, dictionaries, and sets.
Lists
Lists are one of the most used data structures in Python. They are ordered collections of items that can be of any type. Lists are mutable, meaning you can add, remove, or change items after the list is created.
For example, here is a list of numbers: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. You can access an item in a list by referring to its index, which is the item's position in the list. Indexes in Python start at 0, so the first item has index 0, the second item has index 1, and so on.
Tuples
Tuples are similar to lists, but they are immutable. This means that once a tuple is created, you cannot add, remove, or change its items. Tuples are useful when you have a collection of items that should not be changed.
For example, here is a color tuple: ('red', 'green', 'blue'). Just like lists, you can access an item in a tuple by referring to its index.
Continue in our app.
You can listen to the audiobook with the screen off, receive a free certificate for this course, and also have access to 5,000 other free online courses.
Or continue reading below...
Download the app
Dictionaries
Dictionaries in Python are a data structure that stores key-value pairs. Each key in the dictionary is unique and the value can be anything: a number, a string, a list, another data structure, etc. Dictionaries are mutable, so you can add, remove, and change key-value pairs.
For example, here is a dictionary that maps color names to color codes: {'red': '#FF0000', 'green': '#00FF00', 'blue': '#0000FF' }. You can access a value in a dictionary by referring to its key.
Sets
Sets are a collection of unique items. In other words, a set cannot have duplicate items. Sets are useful when you want to maintain a collection of items, but don't care about the ordering or frequency of the items.
For example, here is a set of colors: {'red', 'green', 'blue'}. Sets in Python are mutable, but once an item is added to a set, it cannot be changed. However, you can add and remove items from a set.
Conclusion
Data structures are a crucial part of Python programming as they allow you to organize, store, and manipulate data efficiently. Lists and tuples are useful when you have an ordered collection of items; Dictionaries are useful when you need to associate values with keys; and sets are useful when you need a collection of unique items. By understanding these data structures, you can write more efficient and effective Python code.
