In this chapter, we will learn how to get started with Python. we will also understand how Python can help with artificial intelligence. Why...
In this chapter, we will learn how to get started with Python. we will also understand how Python can help with artificial intelligence.
Why use Python to develop AI
Artificial intelligence is considered to be the trending technology of the future. There are already many applications available. Therefore, many companies and researchers are interested in it. But the main question that arises here is that in which programming language these AI applications can be developed? There are various programming languages such as:Lisp, Prolog, C++, Java and Python, which can be used to develop AI applications. Among them, Python programming language is widely popular for the following reasons -
Simple syntax and less coding
The simple syntax of the Python programming language is very simple and can be used to develop AI applications. Thanks to this feature, testing can be easier and we can focus more on programming.
Built-in AI project libraries
One of the main advantages of using Python for AI is that it has libraries built in. Python has libraries for almost all kinds of AI projects. For example, NumPy, SciPy, matplotlib, nltk, SimpleAI are some of the important built-in Python libraries.
- Open Source - Python is an open source programming language. This makes it widely popular in the community.
- Can be used for a wide range of programming - Python can be used for a wide range of programming tasks, such as small shell scripts to enterprise web applications. This is another reason why Python is suitable for AI projects.
Features of Python
Python is a high-level, interpreted, interactive, and object-oriented scripting language. Python is designed to be highly readable. It often uses English keywords, as other languages use punctuation, and it has less syntactic structure than other languages. Python's features include the following -
- Easy to read - Python code is much clearer and easier to read.
- Easy to maintain - Python's source code is fairly easy to maintain.
- Extensive Standard Libraries - Most of Python's libraries are very portable and cross-platform compatible on UNIX, Windows, and Macintosh.
- Interactive Mode - Python supports interactive mode, allowing interactive testing and debugging of code snippets.
- Portable - Python runs on a variety of hardware platforms and has the same interface on all platforms.
- Extensible - Low-level modules can be added to the Python interpreter. These modules allow programmers to add or customize their tools to improve efficiency.
- Databases - Python provides interfaces to all major commercial databases.
- GUI Programming - Python supports GUI applications that can be created and ported to many system calls, libraries, and Windows systems (such as Windows MFC, Macintosh, and Unix's X Window System).
- Extensible - Python provides better structure and support for large programs than shell scripts.
Important Features of Python
Now take a look at the following important features of Python -
- It supports functional and structured programming methods as well as OOP.
- It can be used as a scripting language or can be compiled into bytecode for building large applications.
- It provides very high level dynamic data types and supports dynamic type checking.
- It supports automatic garbage collection.
- It can be easily integrated with C, C++, COM, ActiveX, CORBA, and Java.
Installing PythonPython
distributions are available for a large number of platforms. Simply download the binary code for the platform and install Python.
If the binary code for your platform is not available, you will need to compile the source code manually using a C compiler. Compiling the source code gives you more flexibility in choosing the features you need for your installation
For installation of Python, please refer to the following installation tutorial article:
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