Python Functional Programming : An Introduction.

Functional programming (FP) is a programming paradigm where computation is treated as evaluation of mathematical functions, and that shuns state and state-mutating data. As Python is not a functional language, it does not include all aspects of functional programming; however, most of the functional programming features may enhance your code and make it predictable, concise, and testing friendly.

Functional Programming Basic Ideas Pure Functions: Functions showing no side-effects and which give same output given same input.

Immutability: Once the data has been created, it is not altered again rather new data would be created.

First-Class and Higher-Order Functions: We treat functions like first-class citizens that have the ability to pass it as a parameter, receive it as result of other functions and store them in variables.

Recursion: The iterating with the help of function calls instead of loops.

Composition of functions: Functions are built up by compositions of simpler ones.

immutable_tuple = (1, 2, 3)
def pure_function(x, y):
    return x + y  # Always returns the same result for same x, y
def apply(func, value):
    return func(value)

def square(x):
    return x * x

print(apply(square, 5))  # Output: 25

Python course in Rudrapur

Advantages of Python Functional Programming

Readability: Code usually covers what should happen without necessarily saying how it should happen

Testability: Pure functions are simpler to test to a higher degree of isolation

Parallel processing: Immutable structures minimize the problem of concurrency

Modularity: Smaller re-engageable functions can be added and combined together

When Python Functional Programming is to be used.

The ideas of functional programming are good when applied to:

1.Data processing pipelines

2.Mathematical computations
3.Concurrent programming
4.The circumstances, in which immutability comes in handy

But then Python is a multi-paradigm language and functional programming is only one of the tools that you have in your toolbox. Functional combined with imperative style usually produces the most Pythonic result.

Conclusion

Although Python is not a strictly functional language, there is support in the language to support functional programming constructs, and as such, in many cases quality code can be written in a much more maintainable way. With some knowledge and its careful application, you will be able to extend your toolbox of programming techniques as well as solve problems in novel ways.

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