Evaluate the code below, and suggest ways to improve it.

Question

def find_sum(num1, num_2):
'''
Finds and returns sum of two numbers
'''
return num1 + num_2

(1 point)
Responses

Instead of returning the sum, the program should just print it onscreen.
Instead of returning the sum, the program should just print it onscreen.

There should be an additional variable defined at the beginning to store the sum, and this value is returned at the end.
There should be an additional variable defined at the beginning to store the sum, and this value is returned at the end.

The method has a docstring that is not descriptive enough. The docstring should mention the variables and their descriptions to improve the code.
The method has a docstring that is not descriptive enough. The docstring should mention the variables and their descriptions to improve the code.

The name of this method should be something else.

Answer 1

The code you provided is generally functional, but there are several areas for improvement. Let's discuss them one by one:

1. Function Naming:

   • While find_sum is somewhat descriptive, a more conventional name in Python for this utility might be add_numbers or sum_two_numbers. Using a more descriptive name makes it clearer what the function is intended to do.

2. Variable Naming:

   • The variable num_2 uses an underscore, which is not usually a conventional naming style. It would be clearer to name it num2, following common Python naming conventions.

3. Docstring Improvement:

   • The docstring is too generic. A more descriptive docstring would mention the types of the parameters and what the return value is. For example:

     '''
     Takes two numbers and returns their sum.
     
     Parameters:
     num1 (int or float): The first number to add.
     num2 (int or float): The second number to add.
     
     Returns:
     int or float: The sum of num1 and num2.
     '''
     

4. Type Hinting:

   • Including type hints can improve code readability and help an IDE or a static type checker understand the expected data types. The function could be defined as:

     def add_numbers(num1: float, num2: float) -> float:
     

5. Redundant Variable:

   • Defining an additional variable to store the sum is not necessary unless you have a specific need to do intermediate processing or logging. The current implementation is already efficient.

6. Input Validation:

   • Adding input validation to ensure that the inputs are indeed numeric can prevent runtime errors, especially if this function will be used in a broader application. You can implement it as:

     if not isinstance(num1, (int, float)) or not isinstance(num2, (int, float)):
         raise ValueError("Both num1 and num2 must be numeric.")
     

Refactored Code Example

Taking all of the above suggestions into account, here is a refactored version of the code:

def add_numbers(num1: float, num2: float) -> float:
    '''
    Takes two numbers and returns their sum.

    Parameters:
    num1 (int or float): The first number to add.
    num2 (int or float): The second number to add.

    Returns:
    int or float: The sum of num1 and num2.
    
    Raises:
    ValueError: If either num1 or num2 is not a number.
    '''
    if not isinstance(num1, (int, float)) or not isinstance(num2, (int, float)):
        raise ValueError("Both num1 and num2 must be numeric.")
    
    return num1 + num2

Implementing these improvements will enhance code clarity, flexibility, and robustness.