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Python FTW: Under the Hood

Hash Brownies

Learn how Python dictionaries treat keys with the same value but different types as equivalent due to hashing. Understand key uniqueness, hash collisions, and how to manage dictionary key updates effectively.

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Let’s learn about the peculiar nature of Python dictionaries.

C++
some_dict = {}
some_dict[5.5] = "JavaScript"
some_dict[5.0] = "Ruby"
some_dict[5] = "Python"
print(some_dict[5.5])
print(some_dict[5.0]) # "Python" destroyed the existence of "Ruby"?
print(some_dict[5]) 
print("---------")
complex_five = 5 + 0j
print(type(complex_five))
print(some_dict[complex_five])



So, why is Python all over the place?

Explanation

  • Uniqueness of keys in a Python dictionary is by equivalence, not identity. So even though 5, 5.0, and 5 + 0j are distinct objects of
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