Concurrency & performance
asyncio, threading, multiprocessing, and profiling-friendly performance patterns.
How to Memoize Async Functions with lru_cache in Python
Cache async function results with functools.lru_cache to avoid repeated expensive awaits, cutting total execution from ~0.4s to ~0.2s in this example.
from functools import lru_cache
import asyncio
@lru_cache(maxsize=128)
async def fetch_data(user_id: int) -> str:
# Simulate expensive async operation
await asyncio.sleep(0.1)
return f"Data for user {user_id}"
async def main():
start = asyncio.get_event_loop().time()
# First calls (miss cach…
How to Memoize Pure Functions with functools.lru_cache in Python
Use functools.lru_cache to memoize a pure Fibonacci function and avoid recomputing repeated values.
from functools import lru_cache
@lru_cache(maxsize=128)
def fibonacci(n: int) -> int:
"""Return the nth Fibonacci number (0-indexed) using memoization."""
if n < 2:
return n
return fibonacci(n - 1) + fibonacci(n - 2)
if __name__ == "__main__":
for i in range(10):
print(f"fibonacci({…
How to Run an Async Main with asyncio.run in Python
Show the canonical entry point for an asyncio program: define an async main, then launch it with asyncio.run.
import asyncio
async def main():
print("Hello from async main")
await asyncio.sleep(0.1)
print("Done")
if __name__ == "__main__":
asyncio.run(main())
How to Signal asyncio Workers to Stop with an Event in Python
Use an asyncio.Event to coordinate graceful shutdown of multiple concurrent worker tasks in Python.
import asyncio
import random
async def worker(name, stop_event):
while not stop_event.is_set():
await asyncio.sleep(random.uniform(0.1, 0.5))
print(f"Worker {name} processing...")
print(f"Worker {name} stopped.")
async def main():
stop_event = asyncio.Event()
workers = [asyncio.create…
How to Use Array Typecodes for Compact Numeric Storage in Python
This code demonstrates how to use the `array` module with typecodes to store integers, floats, and bytes in a memory-efficient way compared to standard Python lists.
from array import array
def demonstrate_array_types():
# Compact integer arrays
small_ints = array('i', [1, 2, 3, 4, 5])
unsigned_ints = array('I', [10, 20, 30])
# Floating point arrays
floats = array('f', [1.5, 2.5, 3.5])
doubles = array('d', [1.123456789, 2.987654321])
# Charac…
How to Use bisect.insort in Python to Maintain a Sorted List
Insert items into an already sorted list using Python's bisect.insort to keep it sorted efficiently in O(n) time.
import bisect
def maintain_sorted_list():
data = [3, 1, 4, 1, 5, 9, 2, 6]
sorted_list = []
for num in data:
bisect.insort(sorted_list, num)
print("Original data:", data)
print("Sorted list maintained with insort:", sorted_list)
# Insert new values to maintain sorted orde…
How to Use uvloop Faster Event Loop
Install uvloop at startup to replace asyncio's default event loop with a faster libuv-based one, with a graceful fallback when it's unavailable.
import asyncio
try:
import uvloop
uvloop.install()
USING_UVLOOP = True
except ImportError:
USING_UVLOOP = False
async def fetch_data(index):
await asyncio.sleep(0.01)
return f"data-{index}"
async def main():
tasks = [fetch_data(i) for i in range(10)]
results = await asyncio.gather(*…
How to set a timeout with asyncio.wait_for in Python
Use asyncio.wait_for to bound an async function with a timeout, catching TimeoutError when it exceeds the limit.
import asyncio
async def slow_task():
await asyncio.sleep(3)
return "finished"
async def main():
try:
result = await asyncio.wait_for(slow_task(), timeout=1)
print(result)
except asyncio.TimeoutError:
print("Task timed out")
if __name__ == "__main__":
asyncio.run(main())
Run Background Tasks with asyncio.create_task in Python
Create background tasks in an asyncio event loop with asyncio.create_task and run them concurrently using asyncio.gather.
import asyncio
import time
async def background_worker(name, duration):
"""Simulates a long-running background task."""
print(f"{name} started at t={time.monotonic():.1f}")
await asyncio.sleep(duration)
print(f"{name} finished at t={time.monotonic():.1f}")
async def main():
print(f"Main starting …
Using a Python Generator Instead of a List to Save Memory
Compare a list approach with a generator to stream values lazily, avoiding memory-heavy storage of large sequences.
def fibonacci_generator(limit):
a, b = 0, 1
count = 0
while count < limit:
yield a
a, b = b, a + b
count += 1
def sum_first_n(generator, n):
total = 0
for i, value in enumerate(generator):
if i >= n:
break
total += value
return total
if __…
asyncio sleep cooperative scheduling demo in Python
This demo shows how asyncio.sleep yields control between concurrent tasks, letting multiple workers interleave their ticks.
import asyncio
async def worker(name, delay):
for i in range(3):
print(f"{name}: tick {i}")
await asyncio.sleep(delay)
return f"{name} done"
async def main():
tasks = [
asyncio.create_task(worker("A", 0.1)),
asyncio.create_task(worker("B", 0.2)),
asyncio.create_tas…
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