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Python Python Collections (2016, retired 2019) Slices Slice Functions

akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points
Posted by akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points

Reverse Evens - Code works, but does not pass check

This Python challenge requests:

"Make a function named reverse_evens that accepts a single iterable as an argument. Return every item in the iterable with an even index...in reverse.

For example, with [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] as the input, the function would return [5, 3, 1]."

Despite my code doing just this when tested in the terminal (returning 531 if the input is 12345) , when I check the work the page indicates it "Didn't get the right results" from the reverse_evens function.

Am I misunderstanding the challenge, or have I made a simple error I've overlooked?

slices.py 
def first_4(iterable):
    list(iterable)
    data_out = iterable[0:4]
    print(data_out) 
    return data_out

def first_and_last_4(iterable):
    list(iterable)
    data_out_1 = iterable[0:4]
    data_out_2 = iterable[-4:]
    final_data = data_out_1 + data_out_2
    return final_data

def odds(iterable):
    list(iterable)
    data_out = iterable[1::2]
    return data_out

def reverse_evens(iterable):
    list(iterable)
    data_out = iterable[-1::-2]
    return data_out

3 Answers

Jason Anders
MOD
Jason Anders
Treehouse Moderator 145,858 Points
Jason Anders
Jason Anders
Treehouse Moderator 145,858 Points

Hi there,

Yes, that code works for a list with an odd number of items (eg. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5), but did you test it with a list with a even number of items (eg. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)? It won't return what the task is looking for.

Hint: for this task, you'll need to employ the use of an if statement to check the length of the list and then use the appropriate slice, whether the list length is odd or even.

I'm sure you'll get it now. Nice work!

:) :dizzy:

akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points
akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points

Thanks for the quick help!

Jennifer Nordell
seal-mask
STAFF
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree
Jennifer Nordell
Treehouse Teacher
Jennifer Nordell
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree
Jennifer Nordell
Treehouse Teacher

Hi there, akoniti ! You've understood the challenge just fine, but seems you forgot something. The problem here isn't so much with your code but with your test data. Your code returns the correct thing in about half the cases. Namely, it returns the correct thing when there is an odd number of elements in the iterable.

If I were to send in [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6] instead of just the one to 5, I would get back [6, 4, 2], but 6, 4, and 2 all reside at odd indexes. My suggestion is to first get all even items and then reverse the list.

Hope this helps! :sparkles:

akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points
akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points

Thanks for the quick help!

akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points
akoniti
akoniti
1,410 Points

Thank you Jason and Jennifer!!

I see now that I was too narrowly focused on making the function do just what the single example showed, instead of doing a little critical thinking about the full requirement, and how my function fell short of meeting it.

Now it is solved: 

def reverse_evens(iterable):
    list(iterable)
    test = len(iterable)
    if test % 2 == 0:
        data_out = iterable[-2::-2]
    else:
        data_out = iterable[-1::-2]
    return data_out

Thanks again for the super quick help!