In article <mailman.3797.1386622419.18130.python-l...@python.org>, bob gailer <bgai...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Understanding the real machine may be of interest to some but is not > essential. Surprisingly (to myself, anyway), I agree. Languages like C, Fortran, and Java, are fairly close to the machine. They all expose (C more than the others) fundamental machine features such as hardware data types (various sizes of ints and floats) and addresses. Understanding how a computer works gives you added understanding of how the higher level language you're using works. But, Python operates at a higher level of abstraction. In a sense, understanding how a computer works is a hinderance to learning Python. Look at all the beginner questions we get regarding what >>> a = 47 means in Python. People have a mental picture of a 32-bit (or maybe 64-bit) integer value 47 being placed into some pre-allocated memory location, and that interferes with their understanding of what's really happening in Python. Likewise, they have incorrect expectations about what happens if that follow that up with >>> b = a ** 100 -- https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
