What are closures and how do they differ from regular functions in Python?

What are closures in Python?

Closures are functions that remember their enclosing lexical scope even when the function is executed outside that scope.

How do closures differ from regular functions?

Closures can capture and remember variables from their enclosing scope, while regular functions do not have this capability.

Can you give me an example of a closure?

Sure! Here's a simple example:

def outer_function(x):
    def inner_function(y):
        return x + y
    return inner_function

closure = outer_function(10)
print(closure(5))  # Output: 15

Are there any use cases for closures?

Yes, closures are often used for data hiding, creating function factories, and maintaining state in callbacks.