1. Introduction to NumPy

By Bernd Klein. Last modified: 01 Feb 2022.

Introduction

NumPy is a module for Python. The name is an acronym for "Numeric Python" or "Numerical Python". It is pronounced /ˈnʌmpaɪ/ (NUM-py) or less often /ˈnʌmpi (NUM-pee)). It is an extension module for Python, mostly written in C. This makes sure that the precompiled mathematical and numerical functions and functionalities of Numpy guarantee great execution speed.

Furthermore, NumPy enriches the programming language Python with powerful data structures, implementing multi-dimensional arrays and matrices. These data structures guarantee efficient calculations with matrices and arrays. The implementation is even aiming at huge matrices and arrays, better know under the heading of "big data". Besides that the module supplies a large library of high-level mathematical functions to operate on these matrices and arrays.

SciPy (Scientific Python) is often mentioned in the same breath with NumPy. SciPy needs Numpy, as it is based on the data structures of Numpy and furthermore its basic creation and manipulation functions. It extends the capabilities of NumPy with further useful functions for minimization, regression, Fourier-transformation and many others.