List Comprehension in Python
In this Python Tutorial we will be learning about Lists Comprehension in Python. List comprehension provides a simple and concise way to create lists.
#more
In this Python Tutorial we will be learning about Lists Comprehension in Python. List comprehension provides a simple and concise way to create lists. It is a great feature that every Python programmer should know!
We will learn:
- What is list comprehension and why should we use it
- How do we use list comprehension
- The syntax of list comprehension
- The extended syntax with conditional statements
- Set and Dictionary Comprehension
- Speed Comparison: List comprehension vs. For-Loops
You can find and test the code on GitHub.
Avoid for loops!¶
squares = []
for i in range(5):
squares.append(i * i)
print(squares)
Better: Use list comprehension¶
# new_list = [expression for member in iterable]
squares = [i * i for i in range(5)]
print(squares)
The expression can be a function:
def cube(i):
return i*i*i
cubes = [cube(i) for i in range(5)]
print(cubes)
Filtering¶
# new_list = [expression for member in iterable (if conditional)]
evens = [i for i in range(20) if i%2 == 0]
print(evens)
def is_even(i):
return i%2 == 0
evens = [i for i in range(20) if is_even(i)]
print(evens)
Modifying¶
# new_list = [expression (if else conditional) for member in iterable]
a = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]
b = [10 if i > 5 else 0 for i in a]
print(b)
Set comprehension¶
quote = "hello everybody"
unique_vowels = {i for i in quote if i in 'aeiou'}
print(unique_vowels)
squares = {i: i * i for i in range(5)}
print(squares)
Nested list comprehension¶
Use sparely! This can be more confusing most if the times.
matrix2d = [[i*j for i in range(5)] for j in range(1,3)]
print(matrix2d)
List comprehension vs generator¶
A list comprehension in Python works by loading the entire output list into memory -> use genereator for large data!
Generators can also be created with generator expressions:
# new_generator = (expression for i in iterable)
s = sum([i * i for i in range(1000)])
print(s)
s = sum((i * i for i in range(1000)))
print(s)
import sys
l = [i * i for i in range(1000)]
print(sys.getsizeof(l), "bytes")
g = (i * i for i in range(1000))
print(sys.getsizeof(g), "bytes")
A word about speed:¶
Somtetimes it can be faster, but this may not always be the case!
from timeit import default_timer as timer
start = timer()
a = [i*i for i in range(1_000_000)]
stop = timer()
print(f'{stop-start:.4f} seconds')
start = timer()
a = []
for i in range(1_000_000):
a.append(i*i)
stop = timer()
print(f'{stop-start:.4f} seconds')
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