Intuitive Python

Chapter 2Shifting Up with the Standard Library

I’ve had one bad bicycling accident in my life. I wasn’t technically on a bike when I got hurt. My four-year-old self was running toward my bike to go for a ride when I tripped and fell directly against the handlebars. My parents took me to the emergency room, where I had to get stitches on my lip. In retrospect, I’m not sure who was more terrified—me or my parents.

In my life since then, I’ve been fortunate enough to ride all manner of bikes without major injury: bikes with disc brakes, bikes fully suspended over front and rear shock absorbers, oversized mountain bikes with 29” diameter tires, and even bikes with electrically assisted pedals. Outside of the early accident, many of my best memories ...