Unit 3: Variables, Statements, and Output Operation

Programming Language

A formal language used to communicate instructions to a computer

High-level Language

A language that is easier for humans to read and write

Low-level Language

A programming language that provides little or no abstraction from a computer's hardware

Compiler

A program that translates the entire source code into machine code before execution

Interpreter

A program that translates and executes source code line by line

Compilation vs. Interpretation

Compilation is faster to run but slower to develop; Interpretation is slower to run but faster to develop

Python

A high-level

Interactive Mode

A Python mode where statements are executed immediately after being typed

Script Mode

A Python mode where a file with a .py extension is executed as a whole

Literal

A fixed value that is written directly in the source code

Numeric Literal

A literal that represents a number (e.g.

String Literal

A literal that represents a sequence of characters enclosed in quotes (e.g.

Boolean Literal

A literal that can only be one of two values: True or False

Variable

A named container or storage location in memory for a data value

Variable Naming Rules

Rules for naming variables

Keywords (Reserved Words)

Special words in a language that have a predefined meaning and cannot be used as variable names

Operator

A symbol that performs an operation on one or more values (operands)

Operator Precedence

A set of rules that determines the order in which operations are performed in an expression

Expression

A combination of variables

Statement

A complete instruction that performs an action and can be executed by the interpreter

Statement vs. Expression

A statement "does something" (an action)

Assignment Statement

A statement that assigns a value to a variable using the equals sign (=)

Shortcut Operators

Operators that provide a shorter syntax for performing an operation and an assignment (e.g.