PyHEP.dev 2024 Workshop Summary Report, August 26-30 2024, Aachen, Germany

TL;DR

The PyHEP.dev 2024 workshop summarized current trends, tools, and future directions in Python-based data analysis for High Energy Physics, fostering collaboration among developers and users.

Contribution

This report provides a comprehensive summary of discussions, topics, and conclusions from the 2024 PyHEP.dev workshop, highlighting current challenges and future plans in HEP Python analysis tools.

Findings

Discussion of analysis scope and challenges in HEP

Evaluation of distributed processing tools like Dask and Coffea

Consensus on organizing future PyHEP.dev events

Abstract

The second PyHEP.dev workshop, part of the "Python in HEP Developers" series organized by the HEP Software Foundation (HSF), took place in Aachen, Germany, from August 26 to 30, 2024. This gathering brought together nearly 30 Python package developers, maintainers, and power users to engage in informal discussions about current trends in Python, with a primary focus on analysis tools and techniques in High Energy Physics (HEP). The workshop agenda encompassed a range of topics, such as defining the scope of HEP data analysis, exploring the Analysis Grand Challenge project, evaluating statistical models and serialization methods, assessing workflow management systems, examining histogramming practices, and investigating distributed processing tools like RDataFrame, Coffea, and Dask. Additionally, the workshop dedicated time to brainstorming the organization of future PyHEP.dev events, upholding the tradition of alternating between Europe and the United States as host locations. This document, prepared by the session conveners in the weeks following the workshop, serves as a summary of the key discussions, salient points, and conclusions that emerged.