If you are an aspiring Computer Science Major or someone who just needs an Intro to Computer Science credit, this is the event you should have been at. Organized by Tech House, one of Union’s Theme Houses, the “(Hello Tech House)” event on Thursday, October 6 was held to introduce students to higher-level Python programming in a fun and less pressure-intense situation than a classroom setting. 

On what inspired this event, Tech House member Noah Pittman ‘26 said “We know there may be a lot of freshmen who may be experienced with coding or may not be and want to learn. We figured this might be a good introduction for them before they get into the upper-level introductory classes. So, it is just a good start for people and we feel like there may be a lot of people who would like to code but are scared about doing it or just don’t know.”

The event started by covering the basics of for-loops, which allow for repeated executions of a command. The event went on to show the process of making a trivia game using dictionaries. Dictionaries, unlike lists or any other data types, tend to have different methods of use, so the organizers explained the basics of this data in Python and the various functions one could use along with it. Python basics were often emphasized by Tech House, as the Python programming language has its own conventions which are often forgotten. Tech House organizers went over the need for proper naming of variables during programming, as well as proper indexing. They also taught how to make a person’s code as universal as possible, and applied this to the trivia game. If you couldn’t attend this event, future Tech House event ideas will also combine learning with socializing: look out for possible events such as a Dance-Off on the Nintendo Switch in collaboration with the Dance House, and a Silent Disco with a DJ and a disco ball.