Fall 2026 · Wolfcode

Computer Science I.

An introduction to programming using Python.

Topics covered include basic program design; program flow including decisions, functions, and loops; command-line and file input/output; variables and types; and string and sequence processing.

Examples on this site run in your browser — no install. Open the matching exercise in WolfCode to submit.

Course outline

Chapter 01

Variables & Types

变量与类型

≈ 75 min · 3 lessons

Name a value once, reuse it many times. Learn the three core types of CSC 141 — int, float, str — and how Python keeps them straight.

Chapter 02

Conditionals

条件分支

≈ 90 min · 5 lessons

Make decisions: if / elif / else, comparison and logical operators, and the order-of-branches trap. Strictly aligned with Think Python §5.1–§5.6.

Chapter 03

Loops

循环

≈ 100 min · 5 lessons

Do something many times. for / range, while, break — and the four patterns (accumulator, counter, tracking variable, while-true) that cover 95% of beginner loops. Strictly aligned with Think Python §7.1–§7.4.

Chapter 04

Functions

函数

≈ 105 min · 5 lessons

Name a group of statements, eliminate repetition, debug the parts one at a time. def / return / parameters / default args / composition. Strictly aligned with Think Python §3.4–§3.11 and Chapter 6.

Chapter 05

Lists

列表

≈ 110 min · 5 lessons

The universal container for sequences of values. Create, index, slice, mutate — and the copy-first idiom that saves you from aliasing bugs. List comprehensions compress map+filter into one line. Strictly aligned with Think Python §10.1–§10.12.

Chapter 06

String Algorithms

字符串算法

≈ 110 min · 5 lessons

Treat strings as collections of characters. Index, slice, traverse, search, count. .split() / .join() / .strip() / [::-1] — the methods you reach for daily. Strictly aligned with Think Python §8.1–§8.10.

Chapter 07

File I/O

文件输入输出

≈ 110 min · 5 lessons

Persistence. open() / with / read / write / append. The shape of every batch data job: read, process, write. Strictly aligned with Automate the Boring Stuff with Python chapter 9.

Chapter 08

Command-Line Interface

命令行接口

≈ 110 min · 5 lessons

Scripts become tools. sys.argv for the raw approach, argparse for proper ones — with --help, type validation, defaults, and exit codes for free. Build a Unix wc clone.

Chapter 09

Recursion

递归

≈ 110 min · 5 lessons

A function calls itself. With a base case to stop, recursion is the cleanest way to express problems that are naturally self-similar — factorial, fibonacci, list traversal, Euclid’s GCD. Strictly aligned with Think Python §5.7-§5.10 + §6.6-§6.9.

Chapter 10

Decomposition

程序分解

≈ 110 min · 5 lessons

How to write a 200-line program without going crazy. Incremental development (small steps, scaffolding, test as you go) + composition (assemble small functions into bigger ones). Strictly aligned with Think Python §3.11, §6.2, §6.3.