Protocol
NumPy Shapes and Vectorized Computation
Create a vectorized preprocessing module with documented shape contracts. Decide when an in-place operation is safe and demonstrate the aliasing consequences.
20–35 active hours60–90 min sessionsBeginner
Mastery contract
Core protocol · Standard 1.0 · Create a vectorized preprocessing module with documented shape contracts. Decide when an in-place operation is safe and demonstrate the aliasing consequences.
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Reasoning — not yet passed
Correctly predict all 6 shapes and explain the index formula without executing code.
Reliable implementation — not yet passed
Loop and vectorized outputs agree within declared floating-point tolerances on ordinary and edge fixtures.
Reproducible experiment — not yet passed
Compare loop and vectorized implementations on identical inputs with warm-up and 5 repeats per size; retain timings and peak-memory measurements, including a case where vectorization uses more memory.
Defense and handoff — not yet passed
Present a tested feature-normalization module and defend its dtype, shape, copy and constant-column policies.
All four criteria must pass. Activity completion does not satisfy them.
An independent reviewer reruns your work and varies something you did not rehearse: a fresh input, a different working directory, or a declared edge case.
Pilot decisions are provisional, not external credentials. For an appeal or sensitive artifact, contact your designated pilot operator with the submission ID. Export your assessment history.
What you will do
6 total
Derive the output shape of 6 broadcasting expressions and write explicit index formulas for matrix multiplication and pairwise squared distance.
Implement normalization and pairwise squared distances with both loops and NumPy; test rectangular arrays, constant columns and noncontiguous slices.
Benchmark both implementations on 3 matrix sizes with 5 repeated timings; report median wall time and the size of major intermediate arrays.
Debug a view that mutates its parent array and a reduction along the wrong axis; preserve the failing inputs as tests.
Write a 500–900 word technical report linking the reasoning, code, measurements, and limitations; include the project decision below.
Assess all 4 mastery criteria against saved artifacts, request an independent review, and repeat each failed criterion on a fresh example.
Essentials
A reading session alone never satisfies a mastery criterion.
Store source references, assumptions, and artifact paths beside every result.
Keep an untouched check case that differs from the worked example.
Record all attempts, including failures and results that contradict your prediction.
Use the stated comparison conditions; document every deviation before drawing a conclusion.
Protocol guardrails
Do
- +State the expected result before running the comparison.
- +Keep one minimal reproducible failing case when debugging.
- +Record environment versions and the exact command used.
- +Compare explanations with saved intermediate values.
- +Ask a reviewer to challenge the weakest assumption.
Don't
- ×Do not copy a worked solution and present it as an independent implementation.
- ×Do not tune against held-out evaluation outcomes.
- ×Do not report only the best seed or discard inconvenient runs.
- ×Do not equate elapsed hours or a completed run with a passed assessment.
- ×Do not conceal reduced-scale experiments behind claims about the original full-scale result.
Protocol authorship
Written by NuthinButta as instructional design. The teaching sources are the official references linked in each milestone; the exercises, workload and pass thresholds are ours, not their authors'.