[Python-Dev] PEP 201 - Parallel iteration

[Peter Schneider-Kamp]

"Barry A. Warsaw" wrote:
> 
> I've made a final pass through PEP 201, Parallel Iteration.  For those
> of you without easy access to the CVS tree, I'm including it below.
> You can also access it through the web at

Great work. It's a pleasure to read.

> High bit: Guido strongly prefers zip() as the name of the built-in.
> All the suggestions so far have pluses and minuses, and in the absence
> of a clear winner, he'd just as soon go with the Haskell name.  I
> agree.

I agree (giving +1 would be blasphemy, right?<wink>).

One important remark:
What about unzip()? Shouldn't there be the reverse function?
One example (which I really wrote not so long ago in an ANN context):

def normalize(seq): # scale to values in 0..1
  return map(lambda x, max=max(seq), min=min(seq):
    (x-min)/(max-min), seq)

# from file with: x1 y1 z1\nx2 y2 z2\n etc.
data = [[1.0, 2.0, 3.0], [-1.0, 1.0, -1.0],
        [-1.0, -2.0, -3.0], [2.0, 3.0, 1.0]]

# zip related data fields, normalize that field, unzip
data = unzip(map(normalize,zip(data)))

> Please see the new reference implementation, which includes a
> __len__() method, and the discussion of the rejected elaborations.
> There's still the open issue of what zip(sequence_a) should return.

I think zip([1, 2, 3]) should give ((1), (2), (3)). My reasons?

1) It feels right to me.
2) It is the way Lisp (or Scheme, don't remember) deals with it.
   [Haskell's zip-unzip is limited to two lists]

By the way, yet another example for unzip():

mylist = [(1,), (2,), (3,)]

What looks better?
a) newlist = map(lambda x:x[0], mylist)
b) newlist = unzip(mylist)

advocating-unzip-as-an-overridable-builtin-ly y'rs
Peter
--
Peter Schneider-Kamp          ++47-7388-7331
Herman Krags veg 51-11        mailto:peter@schneider-kamp.de
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