CS102L Data Structures & Algorithms

Lab Week 1

Department of Computer Science

Dhanani School of Science and Engineering
Habib University
Spring 2025

Copyright @ 2025 Habib University

Contents

1 Introduction 3
1.1 Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 Marking scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Lab Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.4 Late submission policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.5 Use of AI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.6 Viva . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2 Prerequisites 5
2.1 Assert Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2 Pytest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3 Lab Exercises 7
3.1 Last name first . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1.1 Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1.2 Note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1.3 Sample Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1.4 Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1.5 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.2 Dude, Where’s My Robot? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.1 Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.2 Function Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.3 Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.4 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.5 Sample Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.2.6 Sample Interaction Explaination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2.7 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.3 Loan Repayment Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.3.1 Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.3.2 Function Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.3.3 Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.3.4 Sample Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.3.5 Sample Interaction Explaination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.3.6 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.4 Social Network User Removal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.4.1 Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

1
 3.4.2 Function Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.4.3 Sample Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.4.4 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.5 Updating Employee Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.5.1 Function Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.5.2 Sample Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.5.3 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2
Introduction

1.1 Instructions
• This lab will contribute 1% towards your final grade.

• The deadline for submission of this lab is at the end of lab time.

• The lab must be submitted online via CANVAS. You are required to submit
a zip file that contains all the .py files.

• The zip file should be named as lab01 aa12345.zip where aa12345 will be
replaced with your student id.

• Files that don’t follow the appropriate naming convention will not
be graded.

• Your final grade will comprise of both your submission and your
lab performance.

1.2 Marking scheme

This lab will be marked out of 100.

• 50 Marks are for the completion of the lab.

• 50 Marks are for progress and attendance during the lab.

1.3 Lab Objectives

Following are the lab objectives of this lab:

• Understand the fundamentals of Python Tuples.

1.4 Late submission policy

There is no late submission policy for the lab.

3
1.5 Use of AI
Taking help from any AI-based tools such as ChatGPT is strictly prohibited and
will be considered plagiarism.

1.6 Viva
Course staff may call any student for Viva to provide an explanation for their
submission.

4
Prerequisites

2.1 Assert Statements

Assert statements are crucial tools in programming used to verify assumptions
and test conditions within code. For instance, in Python, an assert statement is
typically as follows:
assert condition , message
For example, in a function calculating the square root, in order to ensure that the
input value is non-negative, one might add the following assert statement:
assert x >= 0 , " x should be a non - negative number "
If the condition evaluates to False, an AssertionError is raised, highlighting
the issue and its corresponding message.

2.2 Pytest
Pytest is a popular testing framework in Python known for its simplicity and
power in facilitating efficient and scalable testing for applications and software. In
order to use Pytest, one first needs to install it and create test functions prefixed
with test in a Python file. To install Pytest, you can write the following command
on the terminal:
pip install pytest
After installing Pytest, one can execute all the tests by typing the following
command on the terminal:
pytest
If you want to test any particular file, then you will have to specify the filename
as follows:
pytest < filename >. py
If all the tests pass successfully, then you should receive a similar output.

5
However, if all tests fail, then you should receive a similar output.

6
Lab Exercises

3.1 Last name first

This function should be implemented in the file q1.py.

3.1.1 Challenge
Write a function named last name first that accepts a single parameter t, which
is passed as a list of tuples. Each tuple contains a name in parts (first name, middle
name, last name). Your function should modify each name so that the last name
appears first in the tuple.

3.1.2 Note
This function modifies a list in place and, as such, should not return any useful
value.

3.1.3 Sample Interaction

>> t = [( ' Ahmed ' , ' Dawood ') , ( ' Haroon ' , ' Hussain ' , ' Fawad ' ,
' Rasheed ') , ( ' Muhammad ' , ' Faisal ' , ' Amin ') ]
>> last_name_first ( t )
>> t
[( ' Dawood ' , ' Ahmed ') , ( ' Rasheed ' , ' Haroon ' , ' Hussain ' , '
Fawad ') , ( ' Amin ' , ' Muhammad ' , ' Faisal ') ]

3.1.4 Constraints
t is a list of tuples, where each tuple has one or more strings in it.

3.1.5 Testing
In order to test your function, type the following command on the terminal:
pytest test_q1 . py

7
3.2 Dude, Where’s My Robot?
This function should be implemented in the file q2.py.

3.2.1 Problem
Your neighbor’s garden robot was hacked and moved from its charging pod where
you had last left it. They cannot find the robot and need the grass trimmed right
now for a party with their committee friends this evening. Luckily, they know of
your skill with computers. You manage to retrieve the last set of instructions sent
to the robot. Now you just have to figure out how far away the robot has moved.
The set contains n instructions. Each instruction is of the form direction distance.
On receiving this instruction, the robot moves distance in direction. The robot
executes the instructions one after the other. Given the list of instructions, you
want to find out the distance that the robot has moved.

3.2.2 Function Description

Write a function total distance which takes the list of tuples movements as
a parameter and returns the total distance that the robot has moved from its
original distance once it has carried out the given instructions.

3.2.3 Input
The input is a list of tuples where each tuple contains the direction (where direction
is one of UP, DOWN, RIGHT, and LEFT ) and distance of type integer.

3.2.4 Output
Return the total distance that the robot has moved from its original distance once
it has carried out the given instructions. Round the distance up to the nearest
integer.

3.2.5 Sample Interaction

>> total_distance ([( ' UP ' , '5 ') , ( ' DOWN ' , '3 ') , ( ' LEFT ' , '3 ')
, ( ' RIGHT ' , '2 ') ])
3

>> total_distance ([( ' RIGHT ' , 1) , ( ' DOWN ' , 0) , ( ' LEFT ' , -2) ,
( ' DOWN ' , -4) ])
5

>> total_distance ([[( ' UP ' , 0) ])

0

8
3.2.6 Sample Interaction Explaination
In the first sample, the robot moved 5 up, then 3 down, then 3 left, and then 2
right. Reluctantly, the robot is 2 up and 1 left from its original position. The
distance is math.sqrt(2 ∗ 2 + 1 ∗ 1) which, rounded up, is 3.
In the second sample, the robot is 3 right and 4 up from its position. The distance
is math.sqrt(3 ∗ 3 + 4 ∗ 4) which, rounded up, is 5.
In the third case, the robot has not moved. The distance is 0.

3.2.7 Testing
In order to test your function, type the following command on the terminal:
pytest test_q2 . py

3.3 Loan Repayment Strategy

This function should be implemented in the file q3.py.

3.3.1 Problem
On the advice of your relative from the stock market, you have invested in stock
in the hope to eventually pay off your Habib loan. Your relative sends you daily
updates on your stocks in the following form.

Purchase Date Purchase Price shares symbol current price

26 Aug 2019 43.50 100 HU 47.02
27 Aug 2019 22.07 500 PTI 19.11
30 Oct 2019 51.98 200 JHR 50.14
28 Nov 2019 137.92 50 WTF 150.28
You want to find out your current earnings from this information. In the ta-
ble above, each share of HU is at a profit of 47.02 − 43.50 = 3.52 . As you have
100 shares of HU, your profit is 100 ∗ 3.52 = 352.
Similarly, with PTI you are at a loss of 500 ∗ (22.07 − 19.11) = 1480 . Your
JHR stocks are at a loss of 200 ∗ (51.98 − 50.14) = 268 and and your WTF
stocks are at a profit of 50 ∗ (150.28 − 137.92) = 618 . Your total profit is
352 − 1480 − 268 + 618 = −778 .

3.3.2 Function Description

Implement the function compute profit that takes stocks information as a pa-
rameter in the form of a list of tuples and returns the total profit. Each tuple
contains the following items in the given order. The type of each item is shown.

9
 • purchase date : int

• purchase price : float

• shares : int

• symbol : str

• current price : float

3.3.3 Constraints
• The argument contains at least 1 tuple.

• All tuples in the list follow the format described above

3.3.4 Sample Interaction

>> compute_profit ([( ' 25 - Jan -2001 ' , 43.5 , 25 , ' CAT ' , 92.45) ,
( ' 25 - Jan -2001 ' , 42.8 , 50 , ' DD ' , 51.19) , ( ' 25 - Jan -2001 ' ,
42.1 , 75 , ' EK ' , 34.87) , ( ' 25 - Jan -2001 ' , 37.58 , 100 , ' GM ' ,
37.58) ])
1101

3.3.5 Sample Interaction Explaination

The input contains information of 4 stocks. The name and corresponding profit
from each are as follows.

• CAT : 25 * (92.45 - 43.5) = 1223.75

• DD : 50 * (51.19 - 42.8) = 419.5

• EK : 75 * (34.87 - 42.1) = -542.25

• EK : 75 * (34.87 - 42.1) = -542.25

The total profit is therefore 1223.75 + 419.5 - 542.5 + 0 = 1101

3.3.6 Testing
In order to test your function, type the following command on the terminal:
pytest test_q3 . py

3.4 Social Network User Removal

This function should be implemented in the file q4.py.

10
3.4.1 Problem
You are building a social networking application focused on connecting people
based on common interests. The application stores user data in a dictionary
users data where each user’s name is the key. The corresponding values include
the user’s phone number and a list of friends they have connected with. Your task
is to create a function that removes user name and all their connections from the
users data.

3.4.2 Function Description

Write a python function named remove user that takes a users data and user name.
If the user name exists, it removes the given username. This is a void function.

3.4.3 Sample Interaction

>> users_data = {
.. ' Alice ': ( ' 123 -456 -7890 ' , [ ' Bob ' , ' Charlie ' ]) ,
.. ' Bob ': ( ' 987 -654 -3210 ' , [ ' Alice ' , ' David ' ]) ,
.. ' Charlie ': ( ' 111 -222 -3333 ' , [ ' Alice ' ]) ,
.. ' David ': ( ' 555 -666 -7777 ' , [ ' Bob ' ])
}

>> users_data = remove_user ( users_data , ' Alice ')

>> users_data
{ ' Bob ': ( ' 987 -654 -3210 ' , [ ' David ' ]) , ' Charlie ': ( '
111 -222 -3333 ' , []) , ' David ': ( ' 555 -666 -7777 ' , [ ' Bob ' ]) }

3.4.4 Testing
In order to test your function, type the following command on the terminal:
pytest test_q4 . py

3.5 Updating Employee Records

This function should be implemented in the file q5.py.

3.5.1 Function Description

Write a function named update record, that takes the following parameters:

1. employee records – A list of tuples representing employee data. Each tuple

contains the following information: (ID, Position, Salary, Experience).

2. ID – An ID of a employee whose data has to be updated.

11
 3. record title – The type of data that needs to be updated. It can be ID,
Position, Salary or Experience.

4. data – data (string or int): The new data that should replace the existing
data in the specified record title.

The function should do the following:

1. If record title is ID, return a message: ID cannot be updated .

2. If the provided ID is not found in employee records, return the message:

Record not found .

3. If the ID is found, update the corresponding record title with the new data
and return a message: Record updated .

3.5.2 Sample Interaction

>> employee_records = [
.. ( " E001 " , " Manager " , 80000 , 5) ,
.. ( " E002 " , " Developer " , 60000 , 2) ,
.. ( " E003 " , " Analyst " , 50000 , 1) ,
.. ( " E004 " , " Designer " , 70000 , 3)
]

>> update_record ( employee_records , " E001 " , " ID " , " E005 " )
ID cannot be updated

>> update_record ( employee_records , " E001 " , " Position " , "
Senior Manager " )
[( " E001 " , " Senior Manager " , 80000 , 5) , ( " E002 " , " Developer " ,
60000 , 2) , ( " E003 " , " Analyst " , 50000 , 1) , ( " E004 " , "
Designer " , 70000 , 3) ]

>> update_record ( employee_records , ' E005 ' , " Salary " , 55000)
Record not found

3.5.3 Testing
In order to test your function, type the following command on the terminal:
pytest test_q5 . py

12