11-17 February 2013

Python continues.  This week was review- the first day of class was a set of labs that was exclusively review-focused, the second a review project.  We re-focused on “if”s, “for”s and “while”s.

The exercises continued to be random, creating a break from the heat index-focused exercises of the start of Python.  The lab was a collection of random stuff.  The project was more focused; it created an exponential population growth simulator, including graphics.  I have not finished the project; it appears we will, however, have two of three days next week to work on it.  (The problem is with the graphics- those keep failing.  I’m not sure why, as graphics is the part of Python that makes the least intuitive sense to me by far.)

Beyond that, there isn’t much to report.  We’re staying the course, albeit certainly speeding up some.  (Speeding up is common to many classes; the reason is usually that teachers expect the students to remember everything they’ve learned as well as on the day they learned it, which is true near the beginning of the year but an exaggeration towards the end.)

4-10 February 2013

I missed a day in Computer Science/Programming this week due to circumstances outside my control, making this a one-day week.  Still, it was as productive as any other week- that is, I did the assignment.

The assignment had to do with some rather random tests on numbers- a test of divisibility by 3, a test of divisibility by 3 xor 5, and a test of whether the number is 60 (and, if not, whether it’s bigger than 0/50/100).  That is to say, it was a rather odd exercise designed to test our ability to use:

* If statements.  These are the simplest- if a Boolean variable is “true”, certain lines run.  If it’s false, one can use elifs and elses to further divide up the options.

* While loops.  While a certain Boolean variable is “true”, certain lines run over and over again until it becomes “false”.

* For loops.  These allow one to run certain lines that include a variable for given values of that variable.  That is, the lines run a given amount of times, each time with a different value of the basic variable.

Whichever one of these is used, it is vital to include a colon at the end of the line- for instance, “if n==1:”.

28 January- 3 February 2013

This entire week was spent working on Project One of Python.  It was a synthesis of functions and graphics of the sort we had learned in the preceding weeks; as such, we didn’t actually learn anything new this week.  The project involved creating a program to aid in the launch of projectiles from catapults for a given target and angle by giving the necessary velocity; this was done using a formula for projectile motion.  Then, we graphed the flight path as if it was a straight line.  Finally, there were two extra-credit problems- one involving the determination of whether a fish was ascending, diving, or actually random noise, and the other involving the determination of whether and by how much a car was speeding.

We spent three days on this; for me, and several others, it took 1.5.  I’m not sure if this is due to a disparity in problem-solving speed (though it’d be odd to have such a big gap) or simply because of overcompensation for the possibility of slowness.  In either case, I think the near-absence of homework as a means of making work up is severely hurting this class’s pace.  Which is OK; I’d much rather have a relaxed pace than tons of homework.