Dictionaries

Please read the following chapters about dictionaries:

• Automate the Boring Stuff: Chapter 5 – Dictionaries and Structuring Data
• Think Python: Chapter 11 – Dictionaries (stop at “11.6 Memos”)

Also, please read the following web pages about how dictionaries are used:

• Using dictionaries to store data as key-value pairs

Skim the whole thing, but really carefully read the sections called “Versatility as a data format” and “Dictionaries in the Wild”. Also read:

• Manipulating Lists and Dictionaries in Python

Read the readings. Doing this will help you begin to understand “dictionaries”, which are ways of storing structured data in python. As you do the readings, think about what kinds of information would be effectively stored in dictionaries? What kinds of things that you would do in programming would you use dictionaries for? Write a summary of what you think dictionaries are good for? What if you combine them with lists?

Then, write down a question. It can be a point of confusion or a needed clarification about anything in the readings, or it can be something interesting that you thought about while you were reading that goes beyond the reading. Or it can be an example you thought about, or a connection you made between the concepts here and other parts of your life. But write down a good question or example based on what you were thinking about while reading.

The summary + question for this week can be submitted on Canvas.