Modules and Strings

Reading

Chatpers 5 and 9.

Key ideas

From chapter 5:

  • Be able to use the math module to solve problems.
  • Be able to use the turtle module to solve problems.
  • Be able to use the random module to solve problems.
  • Be able to figure out how to use other modules when needed.

From chapter 9:

  • str type
  • String concatenation operator: +
  • Substring operators: in, not in
  • String indexing, e.g. if mascot = "hawks", mascot[2]
  • String comparison: <, <=, ==, >, >=, !=
  • String slicing, e.g. mascot[1:3]
  • Common methods:
    • Determining length: len
    • Related to case: upper, lower, capitalize
    • Related to whitespace: strip, lstrip, rstrip
    • Related to formatting: center, ljust, rjust
    • Related to finding substrings: find, rfind, index, rindex
    • Related to counting occurrences: count
  • Useful constants:
    • string.ascii_lowercase
    • string.ascii_uppercase
    • string.digits
    • string.punctuation
  • Python documentation for strings: Online Documentation

Active learning

Activity 1

Review key-events.py. Then,

  1. Add appropriate comments to key-events.py.
  2. Modify the program so that pressing the f or F moves the turtle forward 50 pixels in its current direction.
  3. Modify the program so that pressing the r, the R, or PageDown turns the turtle 45 degrees to the right but does not move the turtle.

Activity 2

Choose five of the string concepts from chapter 9 and write simple examples in the Python shell to illustrate that you understand them. Then, find a partner and show them your examples.

Activity 3

Write a program that implements a Caesar cipher on lowercase letters. For example, if they key is 2, each letter is replaces by the letter that comes 2 positions later in the alphabet. for example, "a" becomes "c" and "z" becomes "b".

Activity 4

Download and experiment with demo.py until you understand it fully. Why can the alternate_case function be called with either one or two arguments? How would you explain what the alternate_case function does to someone who knows nothing about computer science?

Activity 5

Write a function named double_integer that repeatedly asks the user to enter an integer until a non-negative integer is entered. The function should then return twice the integer’s value. For example, the user might enter "apple", then "3.14", then "-34", then "34". In this example, the function should return 68.