10 Facts About Python Development

Python is a high-level programming language that has user-friendly syntax. It is known to have fewer lines of code in an easy and simple form.

In fact, Python is so popular that almost every industry is using it.

Today, we’ll share some fun facts about Pyhton programming.

1. Python overtook french

Believe it or not, in the UK in 2015, Python overtook French to be the most popular language taught in primary schools.

Six out of ten parents said they wanted their primary school age children to learn the coding language over French. And 75% of primary school children said they would rather learn how to programme a robot than learn a modern foreign language.

This just shows that many people appreciated the importance of Python programming.

2. Python was a hobby project

Did you know that Python was not created as a commercial or a professional project, and rather, it was a hobby project of the creator?

Python’s creator Guido van Rossum was looking for an interesting project to keep him occupied during Christmas. He had been thinking of writing a new scripting language that’d be a descendant of ABC and also appeal to Unix/C hackers. He chose to call it Python.

There are a lot of fun projects in Python that you can do while learning or improving your coding skills.

3. Python was named after a TV show

The language’s name isn’t about snakes, but about the popular British comedy troupe Monty Python (from the 1970s). Guido himself is a big fan of Monty Python’s Flying Circus.

He named it Python because it is short, mysterious and unique.

4. Does not require a compiler

As a high-level and interpreted language, Python does not need a compiler. This is unlike Java and C++ which have to be compiled first before being interpreted. For Python, it relies on an application known as an interpreter.

The Python byte code is stored in the form of a .pyc file which is then executed by an appropriate virtual machine. This machine acts as a run-time engine of Python.

5. Python is older than Java

Python was initially released in 1991 whereas Java was released in 1995. Thus, Python is now almost 30 years old and still stands strong for the future.

6. Python has Variants

Python programming language has different variants for different use cases and applications. Some of the Python variants are,

• CPython-It is written in C and is the most common implementation of Python

• Jython- It is written in Java that compiles to bytecode

• IronPython- This is implemented in C# and is an extensibility layer to frameworks written in .NET

• Brython- It is Python for Browser and it runs in the browser

• RubyPython- It is the bridge between Python and Ruby interpreters

• PyPy- It is implemented in Python

• MicroPython- This variant runs on a microcontroller

7. There’s a poem written about Python

There is actually a poem written by Tim Peters named THE ZEN OF PYTHON which can be read by just writing import this in the interpreter.

The Zen of Python, by Tim Peters

Beautiful is better than ugly.
Explicit is better than implicit.
Simple is better than complex.
Complex is better than complicated.
Flat is better than nested.
Sparse is better than dense.
Readability counts.
Special cases aren’t special enough to break the rules.
Although practicality beats purity.
Errors should never pass silently.
Unless explicitly silenced.
In the face of ambiguity, refuse the temptation to guess.
There should be one– and preferably only one –obvious way to do it.
Although that way may not be obvious at first unless you’re Dutch.
Now is better than never.
Although never is often better than *right* now.
If the implementation is hard to explain, it’s a bad idea.
If the implementation is easy to explain, it may be a good idea.
Namespaces are one honking great idea — let’s do more of those!

8. Big companies use python

Many big names use (or have used) Python for their products/services. Some of these are: NASA, Google, Facebook, Netflix, Reddit, Quora, MIT, Spotify, Udemy, Shutterstock, Uber, Amazon, Mozilla, Dropbox, Pinterest,

Youtube

9. Supports multiple assignments in one statement

Python will let you assign the same value to multiple variables in one statement. It will also let you assign values to multiple variables at once.

10. Python influenced Javascript

Python is one of the 9 languages that influenced the design of JavaScript. Others include AWK, C, HyperTalk, Java, Lua, Perl, Scheme, and Self.