A Python distribution is a software bundle, which contains a Python interpreter and the Python standard library. What is Anaconda being discussed in lectures?

Anaconda is a free and open-source distribution of the Python and R programming languages for scientific computing (data science, machine learning applications, large-scale data processing, predictive analytics, etc.), that aims to simplify package management and deployment.

The distribution includes data-science packages suitable for Windows, Linux, and MacOS. It is developed and maintained by Anaconda, Inc., which was founded by Peter Wang and Travis Oliphant in 2012.

Anaconda comes with a suite of graphical tools called Anaconda Navigator. This can be used to start applications and manage conda packages, environments and channels without using command-line commands.

Anaconda also includes a package manager called Conda. It is an open-source package management system and environment management system that runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Conda installs packages into the anaconda environment.

In summary, Anaconda is a Python distribution geared towards data science and machine learning and comes with many useful features and tools that make it attractive to professionals in these fields.