Python Essentials

This text describes the essentials of the Python programming language for symbolic and numeric engineering problems, emphasizing an interactive approach. It incorporates the Spyder IDE in conjunction with the four Python packages (NumPy, SciPy, SymPy, and MatplotLib) most frequently used in engineering and the sciences. The book is divided into four parts. The first part, chapter 1, outlines the environment for using Python in an interactive mode and provides descriptions of the many functions and operations available in that environment for numerical and symbolic problem-solving and for basic 2-D plotting of results. For users with no or little experience with Python the chapter can serve as a tutorial while for users with some Python experience the chapter can serve as a reference guide. The second part of the book, contained in chapters 2 and 3, discusses vectors and arrays (matrices) from both a mathematical perspective as well as from a physical perspective. Engineering examples are provided in the chapters and the exercises. Chapters 3, 4, 5 and 8 are the third part of the book, covering the solution of 1) linear simultaneous algebraic equations, 2) nonlinear algebraic equations, 3) ordinary differential equations, and 4) partial differential equations, respectively. These topics again are covered from both a mathematical and physical standpoint with solutions obtained in engineering examples and exercises. Python animations are also introduced as part of the solutions found for ordinary differential equations. Finally, the fourth part of the book, chapter 7, covers the use of 2-D and 3-D plotting as well as symbolic plotting in detail, expanding significantly on the short introduction given in chapter 1.