def is_a_number(x): """This function determines if its argument, x, is in the format of a number. It can be number can be in integer, floating point, scientific, or engineering format. The function returns True if the argument is formattted like a number, and False otherwise.""" import re num_re = re.compile(r'^[-+]?([0-9]+\.?[0-9]*|\.[0-9]+)([eE][-+]?[0-9]+)?$') mo = num_re.match(str(x)) if mo: return True else: return False