Course Content
Conditional Statements in Python
Conditional Statements in Python
Introduction to if Statement
In this course, we'll focus on understanding the purpose of conditional statements, learn how they enable decision-making in programming, and explore an example to see them in action.
What Are Conditional Statements?
A conditional statement allows your program to make decisions by executing different blocks of code based on whether a specific condition is True
or False
. Think of it as answering a "yes or no" question in your code: "If this condition is true, do this."
For example, imagine building a Fitness Tracker. If a user's step count reaches their daily goal, you might display a congratulatory message. Otherwise, you might encourage them to take more steps.
Syntax of a Conditional Statement
Here's the basic syntax of an if statement:
Explanation of the Syntax:
if
: this keyword begins the conditional statement;condition
: this is a logical expression that evaluates toTrue
orFalse
;- Code Block: the indented code below the
if
statement runs only when the condition isTrue
.
Example: Checking Step Count in a Fitness Tracker
Let's write a simple example using a Fitness Tracker. We'll check if the user has achieved their step goal for the day.
steps_taken = 12000 step_goal = 10000 if steps_taken >= step_goal: print("Congratulations! You've reached your daily step goal.")
Explanation
- Condition: the
if
statement checks if the number of steps taken (steps_taken
) is greater than or equal to the step goal (step_goal
); - Result: if the condition is True (e.g.,
12000 >= 10000
), the message"Congratulations! You've reached your daily step goal."
is printed. But if the condition is False (e.g.,7500 >= 10000
), nothing happens, and the program moves on.
1. What is the purpose of a conditional statement?
2. What does this code do if steps_taken = 7500
and step_goal = 10000
?
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