Python in Digital Scholarship

Introduction to Python

Python is a high-level, general-purpose programming language known for its emphasis on code readability and simplicity. First released in 1991 by Guido van Rossum, Python supports multiple programming paradigms (procedural, object-oriented, and functional) and is dynamically typed and garbage-collected. Python’s clear syntax and extensive standard library make it easy to learn and efficient to use for a wide range of tasks. It consistently ranks among the most popular programming languages and is widely used in academia for research and instruction, as well as in industry. Python’s versatility allows it to be applied in data analysis, scientific computing, web development, automation, machine learning, and more. Its design philosophy (often summarized in the “Zen of Python”) encourages clean, readable code, which is especially beneficial in collaborative research and teaching environments.

How to Use This Guide

This home page is an overview. Use the page tabs on the left-hand side to explore: 

• An overview of Python as an open-source software with an online community
• Setting up Python and installing packages
• Exploratory Data Analysis with tutorials
• Data visualization with tutorials
• Text analysis and natural language processing with tutorials
• Machine learning with tutorials
• Web scraping with tutorials
• Digital Scholarship workshop

Need help? Contact information is available on the left-hand navigation.

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