Introduction to Python (COpA)

This is the first workshop of the COpA training school. The aim of this workshop is to introduce participants to the Python programming language using Google Colab notebooks.

The workshop is divided into three parts:

  1. Python Basics: Working with text (~1 hour)
  2. Quick break (~15 minutes)
  3. Pandas: Data manipulation (~1 hour)
  4. Q&A and take-home exercise (~35 minutes)

We will cover the fundamental elements of the Python programming language, including variables, data types, loops, and functions, with a primary focus on working with textual data. We will not cover numeric data, quantitative methods, and statistics.

Throughout this workshop, you will use Python to perform operations and tasks that you are already familiar with, such as manipulating text and extracting information from text corpora like movie scripts. This will help you understand how Python works and its ability to automate tasks that would otherwise require manual effort. By focusing on familiar tasks, you can concentrate on learning Python rather than acquiring new techniques.

Link to Colab notebooks:

  1. Example Notebook
  2. Python Basics
  3. Introduction to Pandas
  4. Exercise