Description
This assignment should be completed as a collection of several Python source (.py) files, one of
which should be named tests.py and should contain test cases written with either the unittest
or pytest framework.
(1) In the slides, it was noted that every function in the random module can be implemented
by transforming the result of random() in some way. Use this fact to implement the
methods uniform(a, b), randRange(start, stop), and choice(seq). The only
function from the random module you may use is random(), although you may use the
other methods you have implemented.
(2) Use the namedtuple function to create a type called Card that represents a standard playing card identifiable by its suit (one of ’CLUBS’, ’SPADES’, ’HEARTS’, or
’DIAMONDS’) and rank (one of the numbers 1–13, with 1 to be interpreted as “Ace” and
11–13 as “Jack”, “Queen”, and “King”, in order).
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(3) Implement the function std_card_deck() that returns a deque of the standard 52
playing cards. The returned deque should be ordered as follows: [(CLUBS, 1), …, (CLUBS,
13), (SPADES, 1), …, (SPADES, 13), (HEARTS, 1), …, (HEARTS, 13), (DIAMONDS, 1),
…, (DIAMONDS, 13)].
(4) Write a function called riffle_shuffle(deck) that simulates a “riffle shuffle” of a deck
of cards, treating the right end of deck as the “top”. Use the following algorithm:
‚ Split the deck into d1 and d2, of nearly-equal lengths, leaving deck empty
‚ As long as there are cards in both decks, choose the bottom card from either d1 or d2,
at random, and place it at the top of deck
‚ When one of the decks runs out, place the rest of the cards from the other deck on the
top of deck
(5) Note that a single riffle shuffle is not a particularly effective shuffling technique. Implement
the function mix_deck(deck) to “fully” shuffle the deck. The only functions you may
use are built-in functions and those that you have implemented in this assignment. Your
function should be “efficient” in that it should run in Oplenpdeckqq time, keeping in mind
the relative runtimes of the various deque methods.
(6) Implement the function deal(deck, n_players) which deals the cards in deck into
n_players hands of approximately-equal size.
(7) In Homework 4, you were asked to count the number of times each letter appeared in a
string, and to report the letter that appeared most often. Rewrite your solution to those
problems using the Counter type and the built-in filter function (and, if you want, the
map function).
(8) In a file called tests.py, write a reasonably complete test suite for the functions you’ve
implemented using either the unittest or pytest framework. All of your tests should be
run when the command python3 -m unittest or pytest is executed at the command
line from your project directory.
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Challenge Activities
Some homeworks (such as this one) will have additional challenge activities. These activities do
not contribute to your grade, but they are problems that I find interesting or challenging.
(9) Implement some of the non-uniform real-valued distribution functions from the random
module, such as expovariate(lambd) or normalvariate(mu, sigma). The equations for these distributions (and some pseudocode for generating them!) are readily available online. As in problem 1, the only function from the random module you may use is
random().
Submission
To submit this assignment, upload a .zip file named “lastnamefirstname.zip” (obviously replacing lastname with your own last name and firstname with your own first name) containing all of
your Python files to the “Homework 8” assignment on Carmen. As always, be sure to note all group
members who contributed to the assignment and what those contributions were.
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