Python Coding challenge - Day 184 | What is the output of the following Python Code?

 

Code: 

x = [1, 2, 3]

y = x[:-1]

x[-1] = 4

print('*' * len(y))

Solution and Explanation:

Let's break down the given code step by step:

x = [1, 2, 3]: This line initializes a list x with three elements [1, 2, 3].

y = x[:-1]: This line creates a new list y by slicing x. The expression x[:-1] means to take all elements of x except the last one. So, y will be [1, 2].

x[-1] = 4: This line updates the last element of the list x to 4. After this line, the list x becomes [1, 2, 4].

print('*' * len(y)): This line prints a string of asterisks (*) repeated len(y) times. Since the length of y is 2, it prints two asterisks (**).

To summarize:

Initially, x is [1, 2, 3] and y is [1, 2].

After updating x[-1] to 4, x becomes [1, 2, 4].

Then, the code prints ** because the length of y is 2.