Copy upper triangle to lower triangle in a python matrix

Question

       iluropoda_melanoleuca  bos_taurus  callithrix_jacchus  canis_familiaris
ailuropoda_melanoleuca     0        84.6                97.4                44
bos_tau         


        

Answer 1

To do this in NumPy, without using a double loop, you can use tril_indices. Note that depending on your matrix size, this may be slower that adding the transpose and subtracting the diagonal though perhaps this method is more readable.

>>> i_lower = np.tril_indices(n, -1)
>>> matrix[i_lower] = matrix.T[i_lower]  # make the matrix symmetric

Be careful that you do not try to mix tril_indices and triu_indices as they both use row major indexing, i.e., this does not work:

>>> i_upper = np.triu_indices(n, 1)
>>> i_lower = np.tril_indices(n, -1)
>>> matrix[i_lower] = matrix[i_upper]  # make the matrix symmetric
>>> np.allclose(matrix.T, matrix)
False