RE: Python: Help With Beginner Stuff
- From: "Sina Bahram" <sbahram@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2010 15:34:03 -0400
See the following:
This rather simple game begins something like "I'm thinking of an integer
between forty and sixty inclusive, and to your guesses I'll respond 'High',
'Low', or 'Yes!' as might be the case." Supposing that N is the number of
possible values (here, twenty-one as "inclusive" was stated), then at most
questions are required to determine the number, since each question halves the
search space. Note that one less question (iteration) is required than for the
general algorithm, since the number is already constrained to be within a
particular range.
Even if the number we're guessing can be arbitrarily large, in which case there
is no upper bound N, we can still find the number in at most steps (where k is
the (unknown) selected number) by first finding an upper bound by repeated
doubling.[citation needed] For example, if the number were 11, we could use the
following sequence of guesses to find it: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 12, 10, 11
One could also extend the technique to include negative numbers; for example
the following guesses could be used to find −13: 0, −1, −2, −4, −8, −16, −12,
−14, −13.
For more, go to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binary_search_algorithm
Take care,
Sina
________________________________
From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Homme, James
Sent: Friday, October 15, 2010 3:28 PM
To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: RE: Python: Help With Beginner Stuff
Hi,
If I was guessing, I'd pick 50 first. Then if it told me that I was too low,
I'd pick 75. If I was too high, I'd pick 25. I used to know some sort of
formula for expressing how to pick a number like that. If I coded it, I'd want
it to work no matter what the low number was, and no matter what the high
number was. Math is not my best friend, though. I think I saw a book about
beginning math for game programmers somewhere. I think it was in the Jamal Misc
programming docs.
Jim
Jim Homme,
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From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of R Dinger
Sent: Friday, October 15, 2010 2:46 PM
To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: Python: Help With Beginner Stuff
Hi Jim,
Your interval bisection program should take 7 guesses max. I will take a quick
look, but I have to go out soon and someone else may answer in the interim.
And there is a bisect (or something) module in Python.
Richard
----- Original Message -----
From: Homme, James <mailto:james.homme@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Friday, October 15, 2010 11:19 AM
Subject: Python: Help With Beginner Stuff
Hi,
I know more than what I'm showing in this program, but I'm taking my
learning back so as not to miss anything crucial. The book I'm reading is in
the Jamal collection of Python docs. It's called "Python Programming for the
absolute beginner." I'm doing the Chapter 3 assignment. The assignment was to
write pseudocode for a program that would simulate the computer guessing a
number from 1 to 100. I wrote the pseudocode. That made me confident enough to
take a stab at writing the program. What follows is my program and one set of
output from it. My question is this. It seems like the way I have worked it
out, the computer is always guessing 10 or 11 times to get the answer. How can
I make the simulation a little more realistic?
=== begin program ===
# comp_guess.py
# By Jim Homme
# October 15, 2010
# Simulate the computer guessing a number between 1 and 100 until it
guesses correctly.
import random
lower = 1
upper = 100
answer = int(raw_input("Give me a number between 1 and 100 for the
computer to guess: "))
print "\nThe answer is %d." % (answer)
comp_guess = random.randint(lower, upper) # The computer makes a guess
guesses = 1
print "For guess %d, the computer guessed %d." % (guesses, comp_guess)
while comp_guess != answer:
if comp_guess < answer:
print "The computer guessed too low."
lower = comp_guess +1 # So it won't guess the same number again.
print "lower is now %d." % (lower)
else:
print "The guess is too high."
upper = comp_guess -1 # So it won't guess the number again.
print "upper is now %d." % (upper)
guesses += 1
comp_guess = random.randint(lower, upper) # Guess again.
print "For guess %d, the computer guessed %d." % (guesses,
comp_guess) # The final guess.
print "The computer guessed the number in %d guesses" % (guesses)
print "Can you beat that?"
raw_input("Press Enter to quit")
=== End program ===
=== Begin output ===
Give me a number between 1 and 100 for the computer to guess:
The answer is 44.
For guess 1, the computer guessed 89.
The guess is too high.
upper is now 88.
For guess 2, the computer guessed 35.
The computer guessed too low.
lower is now 36.
For guess 3, the computer guessed 82.
The guess is too high.
upper is now 81.
For guess 4, the computer guessed 37.
The computer guessed too low.
lower is now 38.
For guess 5, the computer guessed 65.
The guess is too high.
upper is now 64.
For guess 6, the computer guessed 52.
The guess is too high.
upper is now 51.
For guess 7, the computer guessed 41.
The computer guessed too low.
lower is now 42.
For guess 8, the computer guessed 48.
The guess is too high.
upper is now 47.
For guess 9, the computer guessed 47.
The guess is too high.
upper is now 46.
For guess 10, the computer guessed 43.
The computer guessed too low.
lower is now 44.
For guess 11, the computer guessed 44.
The computer guessed the number in 11 guesses
Can you beat that?
Press Enter to quit
=== End Output ===
Jim Homme,
Usability Services,
Phone: 412-544-1810. Skype: jim.homme
Internal recipients, Read my accessibility blog
<http://mysites.highmark.com/personal/lidikki/Blog/default.aspx> . Discuss
accessibility here
<http://collaborate.highmark.com/COP/technical/accessibility/default.aspx> .
Accessibility Wiki: Breaking news and accessibility advice
<http://collaborate.highmark.com/COP/technical/accessibility/Accessibility%20Wiki/Forms/AllPages.aspx>
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