Python slice first and last element in list

One way:

some_list[::len(some_list)-1]

A better way (Doesn't use slicing, but is easier to read):

[some_list[0], some_list[-1]]

Python 3 only answer (that doesn't use slicing or throw away the rest of the list, but might be good enough anyway) is use unpacking generalizations to get first and last separate from the middle:

first, *_, last = some_list

The choice of _ as the catchall for the "rest" of the arguments is arbitrary; they'll be stored in the name _ which is often used as a stand-in for "stuff I don't care about".

Unlike many other solutions, this one will ensure there are at least two elements in the sequence; if there is only one (so first and last would be identical), it will raise an exception (ValueError).