Python Sum

Python's sum function is a built-in function that returns the sum of all elements in an iterable. The iterable can be any object that can be looped over, including lists, tuples, sets, and even strings.

Here's the basic syntax of the sum function:

sum(iterable, start=0)

The iterable parameter is the object that contains the items that you want to sum. The start parameter is an optional value that represents the starting value of the sum.

For example, let's say we have a list of numbers:

numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

We can use the sum function to find the total sum of the numbers in the list:

total_sum = sum(numbers)
print(total_sum)   # Output: 15

We can also provide a starting value for the sum:

total_sum = sum(numbers, 10)
print(total_sum)   # Output: 25

In this case, the start parameter is set to 10, so the sum function adds the numbers in the list starting with 10 instead of 0.

We can use the sum function with other iterables as well. For example, we can find the sum of all characters in a string:

text = "Hello, World!"
char_sum = sum(ord(c) for c in text)
print(char_sum)   # Output: 991

In this example, we first use a generator expression to convert each character in the string into its ASCII code using the ord function. We then pass this generator expression to the sum function, which calculates the sum of all ASCII codes.

In conclusion, the sum function is a powerful tool in Python that allows you to quickly calculate the sum of items in any iterable. Whether you're working with lists, tuples, sets, or strings, the sum function can help you easily find the total sum of all elements.