Episode
Why Your Python Functions Are Secretly Changing Data You Never Passed to Them
- Published
- May 28, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 498
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://share.transistor.fm/s/8200f3d9
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Summary
This story was originally published on HackerNoon at: https://hackernoon.com/why-your-python-functions-are-secretly-changing-data-you-never-passed-to-them . Python's mutable default bug silently grows your lists across calls. Learn why it happens, how to fix it, and when it's actually intentional. Check more stories related to programming at: https://hackernoon.com/c/programming . You can also check exclusive content about #python , #python-programming , #python-tutorials , #python-debugging , #mutable-objects , #python-functions , #bugs , #hackernoon-top-story , and more. This story was written by: @sohelalam79 . Learn more about this writer by checking @sohelalam79's about page, and for more stories, please visit hackernoon.com . You defined a function with a list as a default argument. Now, it's accumulating data across calls you never connected.