Introduction to Programming Concepts with Case Studies in Python

Using the Python language as a medium for illustrating and demonstrating the concepts, this introductory book explores computer science in a programming environment, offering fundamental ideas and abstract theorems for solving computational problems.

The current text provides a clear introduction to Computer Science concepts in a programming environment. It is designed as suitable use in freshman- or introductory level coursework in CS and provides the fundamental concepts as well as abstract theorems for solving computational problems. The Python language serves as a medium for illustrating and demonstrating the concepts.

This book is needed because Python is becoming the language through which freshman computer science and engineering students are introduced to the concepts of programming and computer science

This book is a timely and strong alternative to the existing textbooks

This book introduces concepts by starting with the Q/A 'WHY'? and proceeds by the Q/A 'HOW'?. Most other books start with the Q/A 'WHAT'? which is then followed by a 'HOW'?

The CS content of this book is not hijacked by a programming language

Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Inhalt

The World of Programming.- Programming Languages.- Programming Paradigms.- The Zoo of Programming Languages.- How Programming Languages are Implemented.- How a Program gets written.- Meet Python.- Further Reading.- Exercises.- Data: The First Ingredient of a Program.- What is Data?.- What is Structured Data?.- Basic Data Types.- Basic Organization of Data: Containers.- Accessing Data or Containers by Names : Variables.- Further Reading.- Exercises.- Actions: the 2nd Ingredient of a Program.- Purpose and Scope of Actions.- Action Types.- Controlling Actions: Conditionals.- Reusable Actions: Functions.- Functional Programming Tools in Python.- Further Reading.- Exercises.- Managing the Size of a Problem.- An Action Wizard: Recursion.- Iteration.- Recursion versus Iteration.- Further Reading.- Exercises.- Complexity.- Time and Memory Complexity.- Further Reading.- Exercises.- Organizing Data.- Primitive and Composite Data Types.- Abstract Data Types.- Abstract Data Types in Python.- Further Reading.- Exercises.- Objects: Reunion of Data and Action.- The Idea behind the Object-Oriented Paradigm (OOP).- Properties of Object-Oriented Programming.- Object-Oriented Programming in Python.- Further Reading.