[PYTHON MATRIX-SIG] scalars and arrays

Chris Chase SRM chris.chase@jhuapl.edu
Tue, 29 Oct 1996 09:31:01 -0500



KH> But if that's what you want, I suggest the following procedure to
KH> convert anything to a rank-1 array:

KH>       a = array(a).flat

Thanks.

>> holding onto my past conceptions - and always require that my
>> functions that can take sequence arguments only allow sequences for
>> those arguments.

KH> I have never felt a need to impose any such restrictions. Could you
KH> give an example of a function that must take a sequence as a parameter?

I have satellite energetic ion measurements that can have a large
number of dimensions, two of which are species and energy channel.
Many of the procedures I write in IDL permit the user to select any
set of energy channels and/or species on which to operate.  This is
usually done via a scalar index or an array of indexes.  Your
array(a).flat trick (could even use it via map() as an idiom for
converting a tuple of scalars or sequences) will solve the problem and
allow me the function to be coded independent of the users input of a
sequence or scalar.

Thanks,
Chris

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