Python throwing strange NameError: name <function_name> is not defined

Question

import networkx as nx #@UnresolvedImport
from networkx.algorithms import bipartite #@UnresolvedImport
from operator import itemgetter
from random import choice

corpus = open('/home/abehl/Desktop/Corpus/songs.wx', 'r')

ALPHA = 1.5
EPSILON = 0.5

song_nodes = []
word_nodes = []    

edges = zip(song_nodes, word_nodes)

B = nx.Graph(edges)
degX,degY = bipartite.degrees(B, word_nodes)

sortedSongNodesByDegree = sorted(degX.iteritems(), key=itemgetter(1))
print sortedSongNodesByDegree

song_nodes2 = []
word_nodes2 = []
Vc = list(set(word_nodes))

edges2 = zip(song_nodes2, word_nodes2)
C= nx.Graph(edges2)

for songDegreeTuple in sortedSongNodesByDegree:
    for i in range(songDegreeTuple[1]):
        connectedNodes = C.neighbors(songDegreeTuple[0])
        VcDash = [element for element in Vc if element not in connectedNodes]
        calculateBestNode(VcDash)

def calculateBestNode(VcDashsR):
    nodeToProbailityDict = {}
    for node in VcDashsR:
        degreeOfNode = bipartite(C, [node])[1][node]
        probabiltyForNode = (degreeOfNode ** ALPHA) + EPSILON
        nodeToProbailityDict[node] = probabiltyForNode

In the above python program, python interpreter is throwing the following error even though the function 'calculateBestNode' is defined in the program. Am I missing something here.

NameError: name 'calculateBestNode' is not defined

Pardon me for posting a large program here.

I have updated the error message, had posted the wrong one here. — stressed_geek
– stressed_geek, Commented Jun 29, 2011 at 20:34

phihag · Accepted Answer · 2011-06-29 21:17:01Z

8

A Python program is executed from top to bottom, so you need to define the function before you use it. A common alternative is putting all the code that is automatically executed in a main function, and adding at the bottom of the file:

if __name__ == '__main__':
    main()

This has the additional advantage that you have now written a module that can be imported by others.

edited Jun 29, 2011 at 21:17

answered Jun 29, 2011 at 20:36

phihag

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1 Comment

Duncan Over a year ago

The parsing isn't relevant: the entire module is parsed before any of it is executed. What is relevant is that in Python functions are created when the def is executed in the normal flow of the program.

bluish · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-03 16:07:43Z

3

You try to use the function calculateBestNode() before you define it in your program. So the interpreter doesn't know it exists.

edited May 3, 2013 at 16:07

bluish

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answered Jun 29, 2011 at 20:34

Hunter McMillen

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