Numba

NumbaNumPy-aware dynamic Python compiler Travis E. Oliphant SciPy 2012. Austin, TX, USA. July 18, 2012

Motivation• Python is great for rapid development and high-level thinking-in-code• It is slow for interior loops because lack of type information leads to a lot of indirection and “extra” code.

Motivation• NumPy users have a lot of type information --- but only currently have one-size ﬁts all pre-compiled, vectorized loops.• Many new features envisioned will need the ability for high-level expressions to be compiled to machine code.

Goals • Most developers should not have to write anything but Python -- or other even higher- level Domain Speciﬁc Language (DSL). • Create faster code using array-expressions from NumPy users -- Fortran is the initial target • Take advantage of multi-core and GPUs for a subset of Python.

Why Not PyPy?• PyPy does not work with CPython• PyPy is a (meta) “tracing” JIT. Machine code is generated on the fly so there is no “build step” -- but we want to support a “build step” when justified• PyPy tries to speed up everything -- we want to optimize more specifically on numeric codes (including complex numbers) More to the story...

Why not Cython?• Cython is great for what it does, but...• Cython creates extension modules which cannot be “unloaded” dynamically• Cython requires a full C-compiler• Cython doesn’t do type inference -- you have to declare types on everything• Cython is another syntax to learn

What’s the real motivation...• “Computed columns” for data-types• Always been bothered by how to write a fast-version of “vectorize”• and... I wanted to play with LLVM!

More Ranting• The world needs more array-oriented compilers -- Python has needed one for a decade at least.• Array-oriented computing needs more light in CS curricula• Most domain experts can write what they want at a high-level. Commonly this is then “translated” to a lower-level and then the compiler gets a hold of it. This is sub-optimal.• Projects discussed are doing this, but still niche. Copperhead, Theano, etc.

More Ranting• Today’s vector machines (and vector co-processors, or GPUS) were made for array-oriented computing.• The software stack has just not caught up --- unfortunate because APL came out in 1963.• There is a reason Fortran remains popular.

Array-Oriented Computing• Loosely deﬁned as “Organize data-together” and operate on it together (or in cache-size chunks) with array-level operations (e.g. NumPy) Object Attr1 Attr2 Attr3 Attr1 Object Object Object1 Attr2 Attr1 Attr1 Attr3 Attr2 Object2 Attr2 Attr3 Attr3 Object3 Object Object4 Object Attr1 Object Object5 Attr1 Attr2 Attr1 Attr2 Attr3 Object6 Attr2 Attr3 Attr3

Goal: Numba should be the world’s best array-oriented compiler.

NumPy + Mamba = Numba Python Function Machine Code LLVM-PY LLVM Library ISPC OpenCL OpenMP CUDA CLANG Intel AMD Nvidia Apple ARM

Ufuncs Generalized UFuncs Python Function Window Kernel Funcs Function- Uses of Numba based Indexing Memory Filters NumbaNumPy Runtime I/O Filters Reduction Filters Computed Columns function pointer

Uses of Numba in SciPy optimize integrate special ode writing more of SciPy at high-level

Numba --- a deeper look Numba is a Python to LLVM translator. It translates Python to LLVM IR (the LLVM machinery is then used to create machine code from there). Numba is NumPy aware --- it understands NumPy’s type system, methods, C-API, and data-structures

Numba -- written in Python • Numba itself is pure Python -- it uses (an updated) LLVM-py to interact with the LLVM C++ library to build a representation of the code in LLVM assembler. • LLVM then creates machine code (or a “bitcode” module which can be persisted or sent to another machine) • Machine-code is equivalent to a C-level function-pointer (e.g. a ctypes function)

Example

Examples

Status and Future• Current master branch mostly due to Jon Riehl (Resilient Science) sponsored by Continuum Analytics, Inc. --- interprets bytecode directly• New devel branch working with AST directly and making rapid progress - Mark Florrison (minivect) - Siu Kwan Lam (pymothoa)

Software Stack Future? Plateaus of Code re-use + DSLs SQL R TDPL Matlab Python OBJC C FORTRAN C++ LLVM

Join Us! http://numba.github.com/numba

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Numba

by Travis Oliphant on Jul 30, 2012

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