The equivalent of `a = b[:n]` is `a = b[1:n]`. And I don't think you can get around admitting that there is a fundamental ambiguity in the spoken statement "Tak

The equivalent of `a = b[:n]` is `a = b[1:n]`. And I don't think you can get around admitting that there is a fundamental ambiguity in the spoken statement "Take a look at the fourth column!" in a zero-based index system. You always need a follow-up question to clarify whether you mean "everyday informal speech fourth" or "zero-index fourth."