Dictionaries - More (in Python)

Dictionary functions

x = {0: 'first', 1: 'second'}
find out how many members are in a dictionary: len(x) -> 2
loop through the keys in a dictionary: for key in x.keys():
loop through the values in a dictionary: for value in x.values():
loop through both keys and values in a dictionary: for key,value in x.items():
find out if a value is being used as a key in a dictionary: if 'pancake type' in x:
get a list of all the keys in a dictionary: list( x.keys() ) # -> [0, 1]
get a list of all the values in a dictionary: list( x.values() ) # -> ['first', 'second']
remove a member from a dictionary: x.pop(0)
add a member to a dictionary: x['pancake type'] = 'buckwheat'
look up a value associated with a key: x['pancake type'] # -> 'buckwheat'
another way to look up a value associated with a key: x.get('pancake type') # -> 'buckwheat'
look up a value associated with a key, but return a default value if that key is not in use: isRealSyrup = x.get('real maple syrup', False)
remove all members from a dictionary: x.clear()
create a copy of a dictionary: x.copy()
merge two dictionaries: x.update(y) # where y is another dictionary

Comprehensions

comprehensions are quick ways of doing common tasks that require loops
they work with any sequence data type, like lists and strings

with strings:

comprehensions work with strings: x = 'berate'
simple comprehensions: [c for c in x]# -> ['b', 'e', 'r', 'a', 't', 'e']
comprehensions with modifiers: [c.upper() for c in x] # -> ['B', 'E', 'R', 'A', 'T', 'E']
comprehensions with filters: [c for c in x if c!="e"] # -> ['b', 'r', 'a', 't']

same with lists:

comprehensions work with lists: x = [0, 1, 2, 3, 4]
simple comprehensions: [c for c in x] # -> [0, 1, 2, 3, 4]
comprehensions with modifiers: [c*2 for c in x] # -> [0, 2, 4, 6, 8]comprehensions with - filters:[c*2 for c in x if c*2<6]# ->[0, 2, 4]

Dictionary examples

Dictionary looping

Dictionaries are basically the same as "associative arrays" and "hash tables"

cat = {
   'breed' : "sphynx",
   'color' : 'grey',
   'age' : 14,
   'name' : 'fusha',
   True: "goo",
   10: 15,
   10.2: 15.9,
   'faces': ['happy', 'sad', 'grumpy']
}

#loop through a dictionary keys
print("looping through the dictionary keys...")
for k in cat.keys():
   print(k)

#loop through a dictionary values
print("\nllooping through the dictionary values...")
for v in cat.values():
   print(v)

#loop through a dictionary keys and values
print("\nlooping through the dictionary keys and values...")
for k,v in cat.items():
   print(k,v, sep=" -> ")

#find the presence of a certain value in the dictionary
print("\ndetecting whether goo is one of the values in the dictionary")
if "goo" in cat.values():
   print("Yes, goo is one of the values.")

#find the presence of a certain value in the dictionary
print("\ndetecting whether goo is one of the values in the dictionary")
if "color" in cat.keys():
   print("Yes, color is one of the keys.")

Dictionary copying

#this shows you the difference between mutable data types and immutable data types
#for mutable types you get an alias with the assignment operator
#for immutable types you get a copy with the assignment operator

cat1 = {
   'breed' : "sphynx",
   'color' : 'grey',
   'age' : 14,
   'name' : 'fusha',
   True: "goo",
   10: 15,
   10.2: 15.9,
   'faces': ['happy', 'sad', 'grumpy']
}

#create an alias of the dictionary
cat2 = cat1

# modify the cat referred to by cat1
cat1['name'] = 'bob'

#both cats point to the same dictionary in memory
print("\nShowing you that cat1 and cat2 are pointing to the same spot in memory")
print("cat1's name is " + cat1['name'])
print("cat2's name is " + cat2['name'])

#compare that to an immutable data type
cat1Name = "foo"

#make a copy of a string
cat2Name = cat1Name
cat1Name = "sherry"

print("\nShowing you that cat2Name was a copy of cat1Name")
print("cat1Name is " + cat1Name)
print("cat2Name is " + cat2Name)

#to make a copy of an mutable data type, you need to do something different!
cat1 = cat2.copy()
cat1['name'] = 'arya'

print("\nShowing that when making a copy of a mutable data type, changing one variable does not change the data in the other")

print("cat1's name is " + cat1['name'])
print("cat2's name is " + cat2['name'])

Comprehension examples

Basic comprehension example

#do a comprehension on a string
print("\nDoing a comprehension on a string...")
myString = "berate"
myList = [c for c in myString]
print(myList)

#do the same thing without using comprehensions
print("\nDoing the same thing with a standard loop...")
myString = "negate"
myList = []
for c in myString:
    myList.append(c)
print(myList)

More advanced comprehension example

print("\nUse a comprehension to modify each element in a list")
list1 = ['foo', 'bar', 'goo', 'noo']
list2 = [item.upper() for item in list1]
print(list2)

print("\nDo the same thing without comprehensions")
list1 = ['foo', 'bar', 'goo', 'noo']
list2 = []
for item in list1:
    list2.append(item.upper())

Advanced comprehension example

#use a comprehension to find only those elements in a list that match a certain condition
print("Using a comprehension to find elements in a list that match a certain condition...")

cats = [
    {'name': 'bob', 'color':'black'},
    {'name': 'susha', 'color':'blue'},
    {'name': 'bob', 'color':'orange'},
    {'name': 'arya', 'color':'yellow'},
    {'name': 'bob', 'color':'green'}
]

#find only those cat dictionary objects with the name key corresponding with the value 'bob'
catsNamedBob = [cat for cat in cats if cat['name']=='bob']
print(catsNamedBob)

#do the same thing without comprehensions
print("Doing the same thing without comprehensions")

cats = [
    {'name': 'bob', 'color':'black'},
    {'name': 'susha', 'color':'blue'},
    {'name': 'bob', 'color':'orange'},
    {'name': 'arya', 'color':'yellow'},
    {'name': 'bob', 'color':'green'}
]

catsNamedBob = []

for cat in cats:
    if cat['name'] == 'bob':
        catsNamedBob.append(cat)