1.2. Datacamp

You should have had a letter from me over the summer (via your college) advising you to work through some modules on a website called datacamp.com

This is a great way to learn Python basics as the website corrects your code, gives hints etc

If, for whatever reason, you haven’t done this - you need to do it before the course proper starts next week. You can use some time in the session today to do it (although do check you know how to access and interact with the workbooks, sort your IT issues, and all the rest first - you can always do datacamp at home).

Here was what you were supposed to do:

• Create a (free) account and go into “skills tracks > Python”
• Select Python Fundamentals.
• Within Python Fundamentals there are four “courses”.

  I’m recommending you work through course 1 (Introduction to Python) and the first section of course 2 (Intermediate Python).

  That would mean covering the following (free) modules:

  • Introduction to Python Basics
  • Lists
  • Functions and Packages NumPy
  • Intermediate Python Matplotlib

If you have done all that, you can go on to the exercises on the next pages of this book.

Warning

It would be great if you have a go at some of the exercises in this book in the introductory session, so you get familiar with opening the notebooks in Google colab or downloading to work locally with Spyder, and with saving your work.

Do have at least a little go with them even if you still need to complete datacamp.