Ecosyste.ms: Awesome

An open API service indexing awesome lists of open source software.

Awesome Lists | Featured Topics | Projects

https://github.com/leouieda/python-hawaii-2017

Introduction to Python workshop in the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the University of Hawaii at Manoa
https://github.com/leouieda/python-hawaii-2017

earth-science geology geophysics geoscience matplotlib numpy python scipy workshop

Last synced: 2 days ago
JSON representation

Introduction to Python workshop in the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the University of Hawaii at Manoa

Awesome Lists containing this project

README 

        
# Introduction to Python Workshop at UH Manoa



**Instructor:** [Leonardo Uieda](http://www.leouieda.com)



**When**:

April 17, 19, and 20. 4:30pm - 6:30pm



**Where**:

Room 703 in the POST building. Department of Geology and Geophysics.



**What**:

We will teach a hands-on introduction to the [Python](https://www.python.org/)

programming language.

You **will not** fall asleep with PowerPoint slides full of code,

calculate Fibonacci numbers, organize lists of names, print

all odd numbers between 0 and 30, or any of that programmer nonsense.

You **will** write code from the start, work in pairs/groups, download data

from the internet, load data, perform linear regressions, make figures and

maps, and other things that you will actually need to do on a daily basis.



**Bring**:

Participants must bring their own **computers** (Mac, Windows, or Linux) with the

required **software already installed** (see [What to install](what-to-install)

below).

[Contact me](http://www.leouieda.com/contact/) if you need any help **before**

the workshop.



## Goals



This is going to be a hands-on workshop of the basic concepts you'll need to

use Python for your research and studies.

Participants who complete the workshop should be able to use Python to gather

data from one or more files, process the data, run an analysis, make

publication quality figures, and save the output.



## Schedule



| **Topics** |

|:-----------|

| **Day 1** |

| *Introductions* |

| First steps: Opening Python and running code |

| The Jupyter notebook |

| Documentation using Markdown |

| Using variables to store data |

| **Day 2** |

| *Recap* |

| Built-in functions and getting help |

| The power of libraries |

| Loading data with numpy |

| Computing with numpy arrays |

| Making plots with matplotlib |

| **Day 3** |

| *Recap* |

| Repeating actions with `for` loops |

| Specifying conditions with `if` statements |

| Making your own functions |

| Bonus: Artisanal data input |

| Bonus: Analysing our data with `numpy` and `scipy` |



## Shared class notes



We'll use Google Docs to edit shared class notes.

Please keep the document open during class.

You can post questions/comments/whatever on the notes or

on the group chat.



1. [Notes for day 1](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cfmbCcUbqQZJHqEPifhVT5hC07r0LHNTwIlckaj5gRk/edit?usp=sharing)

2. [Notes for day 2](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1i1daJKs6qrqtVEjxLSGd69Atay2UYujTn2YXVB_-FjU/edit?usp=sharing)

3. [Notes for day 3](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1amWSLCPh1EkjpfAdaE3-TUus1Apdjr_d-oC3Z-eL93s/edit?usp=sharing)



## Data



Throughout the workshop, we will work with temperature data from

[Berkeley Earth](http://berkeleyearth.org/).



[![](http://berkeleyearth.lbl.gov/auto/Regional/TAVG/Figures/global-land-TAVG-Trend.png)](http://berkeleyearth.lbl.gov/regions/global-land)



We'll start working with the time series of [average temperature in

Hawaii](http://berkeleyearth.lbl.gov/regions/hawaii) and try to reproduce the

figure from the website using Python tools.



Next, we will automatically download the temperature time series for a list of

countries, make plots, and run some analysis on the data.



The data files are available in the `data` folder just in case we have network

problems.

The files were downloaded using the script `download-data.py` which is what we

would write on day 2.



## What to install



There are many ways to get Python on your system and it can be very confusing

when you're first starting out.

I **don't** recommend downloading it from python.org or using the Python that

came with your system (common on Linux).

Instead, **use the Anaconda distribution**.

It will come with all the libraries you'll need and doesn't require

administrative access to install.



Go to https://www.continuum.io/downloads and select the **Python 3.6** version

of the installer for your system.

It's safe to use all the default configuration options when installing.



**Even if you already have Python** (say from your system package manager or

ArcGIS, etc), I recommend that you install Anaconda to avoid problems with

versioning.



You'll also need a **text editor**. If you don't already have one of your

choice, I recommend installing [Sublime Text](https://www.sublimetext.com/)

(it's available for Linux, Windows, and Mac).



**Please install all software BEFORE comming to the workshop.** If you have any

problems installing or don't know which version you need to download,

[come talk to me](http://www.leouieda.com/contact/).



## Recommended Literature



We will loosely follow the Python lessons from

[Software Carpentry](https://software-carpentry.org/).

I highly recommend taking a look at all of their material.

Everything there is worth learning.



See this blog post for more resources for getting started in Python:

http://www.leouieda.com/blog/getting-started-with-python-for-science.html



To perfect your Python-fu, I highly recommend trying to solve the

[Python Challenge](http://www.pythonchallenge.com/).

It's a fun way to learn general Python skills, like parsing text, downloading

web content, regular expressions, and much more.

The challenges are usually very difficult but also very rewarding when you can

complete them.



## License



Creative Commons License
This content is licensed under a

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.