3.3. Python

Python is a general-purpose, multi-paradigm programming language, created by Guido van Rossum and first released in 1991 [248]. It has since evolved into one of the most popular programming languages in the world, consistently ranking among the top five throughout the last decade and topping the list since 2021, according to the TIOBE Index. In 2024, Python became the top language in GitHub [91], tied to its dominance in artificial intelligence and machine learning applications. Moreover, Python is the leading programming language for scientific software development [63, 80, 202], widely adopted by major organizations such as CERN [79, 125] and NASA [227], and instrumental in key scientific achievements [1] like the discovery of gravitational waves [5] and black hole imaging [40].

Python is now the most recommended language for various applications due to its simplicity, versatility, and extensive ecosystem [13, 14, 74, 173, 180, 185, 205], which provides performance-optimized libraries for array programming [105], fundamental algorithms [252], data analysis [273], machine learning [192, 193, 207], image processing [247], visualization [123, 208], interactive distributed computing [98, 196, 272], parallel programming [56, 177], and domain-specific scientific applications [46, 50, 52, 171, 174, 271].

Python can readily handle complex tasks such as web integration and visualization that are hard to address in low-level languages [205], while bridging the performance gap via optimized compilers [20, 99, 149], GPU run-time code generators [142], nd APIs for integrating low-level languages [185, 205]. This adaptability enables rapid prototyping of complex applications, allowing developers to quickly evaluate various ideas and efficiently optimize the best solution [264]. The recent advancements in parallel distributed computing with Python [14, 61, 164, 165, 244] and Jupyter [51] has even motivated large high-performance computing (HPC) communities to shift toward Python [130, 241].