Convert string into a function call

Question

I have a string variable with the exact name of a function, e.g.

ran_test_opt = \"random_aoi\"

The function looks like this:

Answer 1

Sure, you can use globals:

func_to_run = globals()[ran_test_opt]
func_to_run()

Or, if it is in a different module, you can use getattr:

func_to_run = getattr(other_module, ran_test_opt)
func_to_run()