map function in Python is a convenient way to execute function for a collection. Let’s see an example that does not use map function.
class playground(unittest.TestCase):
def pow(self, n):
return n**n
def test_pow(self):
numbers = range(10)
for number in numbers:
result = self.pow(number)
print(result)
Output:
1
1
4
27
256
3125
46656
823543
16777216
387420489
The example above just executes the pow function sequentially for every item in the integer list.
If you use a map function, the code becomes concise and easier to manage. It might be a little confusing but if you get used to it, it’s not too bad.
class playground(unittest.TestCase):
def pow(self, n):
return n**n
def test_map(self):
numbers = range(10)
results = map(self.pow, numbers)
print(list(results))
Output:
[1, 1, 4, 27, 256, 3125, 46656, 823543, 16777216, 387420489]
I didn’t know 0^0 was 1… I knew n^0 was always 1 but… Interesting. 🙂
