1. Introduction
This wiki contains tips for learning Python in parallel with the basic MATLAB programming topics covered in BIOM 1720.
Python is a programming language created by the open-source movement. Like Wikipedia, it was created by passionate people working for free, and it is freely available to anyone. Open-source means that, unlike proprietary software created by large for-profit corporations such as Microsoft or Apple, you are free to "look inside" the software, learn how it works, and modify it in any way you see fit.
A word about the open-source movement. The open-source movement goes way beyond software--it is an extremely important force shaping society as we move forward into the information age. For a brief explanation of how it is transforming our society, watch Clay Shirky's excellent TED Talk.
Python is a powerful, easy to learn language. It is especially praised for how quickly one can use it to write even complex software. Python code, when properly written, looks almost like English and is easy to understand. It is portable, meaning that almost any device can understand it. And it is free. The Python Software Foundation describes Python in an executive summary found here.
One of the challenging aspects of using open source software is the way that "customer support" is provided. Since there aren't really customers in the traditional sense, there's no hotline you can call. But in the same way that an online community has grown up around creating Python, hundreds of thousands or perhaps even millions of people are continually communicating with each other on the internet to learn, fix, and improve Python. I am happy to help anyway I can--just write me at sfstrain at memphis dot edu--but the best way to get help is to learn how to find and use online resources. There are many thousands of reference webpages, online tutorials, and software community message boards reachable through Google. With a little practice, you will get very good at finding the help you need.
This GitHub repository is designed to help you learn to use Python to do the main things you'll do with MATLAB in BIOM 1720: import data, perform calculations and data analysis, and plot your results.
If you are an honors student, then you will learn Python for honors credit, and you will be responsible for creating one or more deliverables (to be determined) that put your knowledge of Python into practice.
If you are new to Python, getting started is a little more difficult than with proprietary software like MATLAB, where all you have to do is install the software and then click a desktop icon to start up an application. The most natural way Python programming is done from a command line environment, especially using a Linux operating system, both of which are unfamiliar to most users.
In order to help get around these difficulties so that you can start learning Python as soon as possible, I recommend installing an application called Canopy Express. It includes
- Python -- we will use version Python 3.5 for this course.
- IPython -- an enhanced Python interpreter with functionality not unlike that of the MATLAB interpreter
- An Editor -- an integrated development environment (IDE) with an interpreter, a file browser, and an editing window (see figure below), similar to MATLAB's programming environment
- Software modules -- numerous code libraries with mathematical and plotting capabilities similar to MATLAB's
Figure. The Canopy Express editor window.
You can download Canopy here. Make sure you install the version that uses Python 3.5!!