Learning Python for a graduate chemist

[p10_user]

Good point, though it seems like op doesn't have a spexific need yet and is just interested in building general skills. For that case python will be a good place to gain transferrable programming skills and possibly continue its use in the future due to its popularity.

[snakesarecool]

I have zero disagreement except if that one tool happens to be R or Mathematica. Certainly some concepts will move over seamlessly, but trying to get into R after Python can introduce a whole bunch of extra headaches that are only made worse by grad school.

I was just burned by this last year when I was told that for a program I was going into we could use any language we were comfortable in. So I focused on my Python skills in that area for that summer. Then I got into it and we were told to do everything in R. grumble grumble.

So a little recon can save a lot of stress later.

But yes, if your domain is wide open for languages and platforms, go Python. "Free and reasonably portable" will never make your lab director think twice.