Introduction to Python and Colab: Running, Quitting, Variables and Assignment

About this Class

Overview Python is one of the preferred programming languages for scientists to solve a wide variety of biological problems. We find that many scientists who come to Software Carpentry workshops use Python and want to learn more about its capabilities. If you are a novice and want to learn how to program in Python to help you in your work, please join our six-week series of two-hour workshops! Instructors will use live code and you will follow along on your own computer. You will gain a strong foundation in the fundamentals of Python along with best practices for scientific computing: breaking down analyses into modular units, task automation, and encapsulation. NOTE: This is a six-part course, held weekly for 6 weeks from 11 am – 1 pm, with a 20-minute lunch break. When you register, you are registering for all 6 weeks. Please make sure you have time in your schedule to commit to all six sessions! Registration is required.  Register at this link.  Sign-in information for the Workshops will be provided once registered.

• Week 1, May 10, 2022, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET: Introduction to Python & Colab, Running & Quitting, Variables & Assignment
  • NOTE: A one-hour help session will be offered on May 13, 2022, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. ET: Getting Started with Google Colab
• Week 2, May 17, 2022, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET: Data Types and Type Conversion, Built-in Functions & Help Libraries
• Week 3, May 24, 2022, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET: Reading Tabular Data into DataFrames, Pandas DataFrames, Plotting 1
• Week 4, May 31, 2022, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET: Plotting 2, Lists, For Loops
• Week 5, June 7, 2022, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET: Conditionals, Looping Over Data Sets, Writing Functions
• Week 6, June 14, 2022, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET: Variable Scope, Programming Style, Wrap-Up

Workshop Recordings and Materials:

• Recordings and Files: https://github.com/CBIIT/python-carpentry-workshop. This page contains last year’s material as well.
• Software Carpentry Lesson: Plotting and programming with Python
• Workshop Webpage at the NCI Data Science Learning Exchange: Introduction to Python A Series of Hands-on Software Carpentry Workshops (2022)

Before the workshop: We will use Google Colab for this workshop. Colab allows us to write and execute Python code through the browser. A Google Account is required for using Colab. If you do not have one, please create a Google Account before the workshop. For technical assistance, contact NCI technical support at https://service.cancer.gov/ncisp. Presenters: Pinyi Lu, PhD, Data Scientist; Andrew Weisman, PhD, Bioinformatics Analyst; and George Zaki, PhD, Bioinformatics Manager, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR) Questions? Contact the NCI Data Science Learning Exchange