Introduction

Welcome! This track covers Python fundamentals and popular libraries.

What is Python ?

Python is one of the most popular programming languages. It’s simple to use, packed with features and supported by a wide range of libraries and frameworks. Its clean syntax makes it beginner-friendly. It's

• A high-level language, used in web development, data science, automation, AI and more.
• Known for its readability, which means code is easier to write, understand and maintain.
• Backed by library support, so we don’t have to build everything from scratch, there’s probably a library that already does what we need.

Why to Learn Python?

• Requires fewer lines of code compared to other programming languages.
• Provides Libraries / Frameworks like Django, Flask, Pandas, Tensorflow, Scikit-learn and many more for Web -
• Development, AI/ML, Data Science and Data Analysis
• Cross-platform, works on Windows, Mac and Linux without major changes.
• Used by top tech companies like Google, Netflix and NASA.
• Many Python coding job opportunities in Software Development, Data Science and AI/ML.

Get Started with Python

Install Python in your system.

What you’ll learn

• Syntax & variables
• Data types and data structures
• Functions & modules
• Virtual environments and pip
• NumPy & pandas basics

Tip: You can run most examples in a REPL: python or python3 in your terminal.

Python Basics

Variables and Syntax in Python

We'll learn the syntax and variables used in Python.

Printing in Python

Python has a very simple and clean syntax, which makes it beginner-friendly.

print("Hello, World!")

Thus prints - Hello, World! Input and Output :

name = input("Enter your name: ")
print("Hello,", name, "! Welcome!") 
#Enter your name: Rohan
#Hello, Rohan"! Welcome!

Variables

In Python, we assign variables some value. Below are a few examples.

x = 10           # int
pi = 3.14        # float
name = "Zarine"  # str
is_ok = True     # bool

💡 In Python, variables are case-sensitive (Name and name are different).

Multiple Assignment

This is how we assign multiple variables at the same time!

a, b, c = 1, 2, 3
x = y = z = 0   # all assigned to 0

Naming Rules

There are some rules to be followed while naming a variable.

• Can contain letters, numbers, and underscores.
• Cannot start with a number.
• Keywords like for, if, while cannot be used as variable names.

Valid examples:

user_name = "Alice"
marks1 = 90
_total = 100

Invalid:

1value = 5       # ❌ cannot start with number
for = 10         # ❌ cannot use keyword

Comments

Single line:

# This is a comment

Multi-line (docstring style):

"""
This is a 
multi-line comment
"""

📝 Quick Exercise

Create three variables: age, pi, student_name. Assign appropriate values and print them.

Data Structures

Data Structures in Python

Python comes with built-in data structures that make it powerful and easy to use.

Lists

• Ordered, mutable (can be changed), allow duplicates.

fruits = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]
print(fruits[0])     # apple
fruits.append("mango")
print(fruits)        # ['apple', 'banana', 'cherry', 'mango']

Tuples

Ordered, immutable, allow duplicates.

point = (10, 20)
print(point[1])    # 20

Sets

Unordered, unique elements, no duplicates.

tags = {"python", "ml", "ece", "python"}
print(tags)   # {'ece', 'ml', 'python'}

Dictionaries

Key-value pairs, unordered (insertion-ordered since Python 3.7).

student = {"name": "Rohan", "year": 2, "branch": "ECE"}
print(student["name"])     # Rohan
student["year"] = 3
print(student)             # {'name': 'Rohan', 'year': 3, 'branch': 'ECE'}

📝 Quick Exercises

• Create a list of your 5 favorite movies and print the 2nd one.
• Make a dictionary with your details (name, age, college). Print the age.
• Try to add a duplicate element to a set and see what happens.

Functions

Functions in Python

Functions let you organize code into reusable blocks.

Defining a Function

We define a function in Python with the use of def(). Below is an example.

def greet():
    print("Hello, welcome to Python!")
    
greet()

Parameters and Arguments

We pass parameters and arguments through functions like in the example below.

def add(a, b):
    return a + b
result = add(10, 5)
print(result)   # 15

Default Parameters

def greet_user(name="Guest"):
    print(f"Hello, {name}!")
greet_user()         # Hello, Guest!
greet_user("Zarine") # Hello, Zarine!

Keyword Arguments

def student_info(name, branch, year):
    print(f"{name} studies {branch} in year {year}")
student_info(branch="ECE", year=2, name="Zarine")

Variable Arguments (*args, **kwargs)

def add_all(*nums):
    return sum(nums)
print(add_all(1, 2, 3, 4))  # 10

Lambda Functions

square = lambda x: x * x
print(square(5))   # 25

📝 Quick Exercises

• Write a function multiply(x, y) that returns the product.
• Write a function is_even(num) that prints "Even" or "Odd".
• Create a lambda function that reverses a string.

Beginner Projects

Projects with Python Basics

Now that you know variables, data structures, and functions, let’s build some small projects.

1. Calculator

Uses variables + functions.

def add(a, b): return a + b
def sub(a, b): return a - b
def mul(a, b): return a * b
def div(a, b): return a / b
a = int(input("Enter first number: "))
b = int(input("Enter second number: "))
print("Addition:", add(a, b))
print("Subtraction:", sub(a, b))
print("Multiplication:", mul(a, b))
print("Division:", div(a, b))

2. Student Information Manager

Uses dictionaries + functions.

def add_student(name, branch, year):
    return {"name": name, "branch": branch, "year": year}
student1 = add_student("Zarine", "ECE", 2)
print(student1)

3. To-Do List App

Uses lists + loops.

tasks = []
def add_task(task):
    tasks.append(task)
def show_tasks():
    print("Your Tasks:")
    for i, t in enumerate(tasks, 1):
        print(f"{i}. {t}")
add_task("Study Python")
add_task("Complete Assignment")
show_tasks()

4. Word Counter

Uses strings + functions.

def word_count(text):
    words = text.split()
    return len(words)
sentence = "Python makes programming fun"
print("Word count:", word_count(sentence))

5. Guess the Number Game

Uses loops + conditions + random module.

import random
secret = random.randint(1, 10)
guess = int(input("Guess a number (1-10): "))
if guess == secret:
    print("🎉 Correct!")
else:
    print("❌ Wrong! The number was", secret)

📝 Mini Challenges for You

• Extend the Calculator to handle exponentiation (a ** b).
• Add a "remove task" option in the To-Do List App.
• Modify Word Counter to also count characters.
• Make Guess the Number keep running until the user guesses correctly.