The task is to create a Python function that checks whether a given string or number is a palindrome. A palindrome is a sequence that reads the same backward as forward, such as “madam” or the number 121.

The function should handle both strings and integers, returning a boolean value indicating whether the input is a palindrome.

Implementation

def is_palindrome(value):
    # Convert the input to string to handle both strings and numbers
    str_value = str(value)
    
    # Check if the string is equal to its reverse
    return str_value == str_value[::-1]

# Example usage
print(is_palindrome("madam"))  # Output: True
print(is_palindrome(121))       # Output: True
print(is_palindrome("hello"))   # Output: False
print(is_palindrome(12321))     # Output: True

The is_palindrome function begins by accepting a parameter named value, which can be either a string or a number. The function then converts the input into a string using str(value). This allows us to handle both types seamlessly.

Next, the function checks if the string representation of the input is equal to its reverse. The slicing operation str_value[::-1] is a concise way to reverse a string in Python.

If the original string matches its reversed version, the function returns True, indicating that the input is a palindrome. Otherwise, it returns False.