Python Set Tutorial: Mastering Unique Data Structures and Operations

In this comprehensive lecture from Programming with Sikander, we dive deep into the Python Set data structure. Unlike lists and tuples, sets offer unique features that make them essential for specific programming scenarios, particularly when dealing with unique elements.
What you will learn in this session:
• Set Fundamentals: Discover why sets are defined as unordered collections of unique elements.
• Mutable vs Immutable: Understand the restriction that while a set itself is mutable (modifiable), the elements within it must be immutable (non-modifiable).
• Creating Sets: Learn the two ways to create a set using curly braces {} or the set() function, and why {} actually creates an empty dictionary instead of an empty set.
• Practical Examples: See how sets automatically remove duplicates from collections like World Cup winners or unique characters in a string (e.g., "Bengaluru").
• Set Methods: Master how to add and remove elements using add(), update(), remove(), discard(), and pop(). Learn why discard() is safer than remove() when an element is missing.
• Set Operations: A step-by-step guide to mathematical operations including Union, Intersection, Difference, and Symmetric Difference.
• Set Relationships: How to determine if one set is a subset or superset of another, or if they are completely disjoint.
Key Takeaway: Because sets are unordered, they do not support indexing; we demonstrate how to access elements using loops instead.