We needed to tame some angry buildbots, but after a small fight, we won with just some scratches! Here you have a shiny new alpha release: Python 3.11.0a5.

**This is an early developer preview of Python 3.11**

# Major new features of the 3.11 series, compared to 3.10

Python 3.11 is still in development.  This release, 3.11.0a5 is the fifth of seven planned alpha releases.

Alpha releases are intended to make it easier to test the current state of new features and bug fixes and to test the release process.

During the alpha phase, features may be added up until the start of the beta phase (2022-05-06) and, if necessary, may be modified or deleted up until the release candidate phase (2022-08-01).  Please keep in mind that this is a preview release and its use is **not** recommended for production environments.

Many new features for Python 3.11 are still being planned and written.  Among the new major new features and changes so far:

* [PEP 657](https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0657/) -- Include Fine-Grained Error Locations in Tracebacks
* [PEP 654](https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0654/) -- Exception Groups and except*

* [PEP 673](https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0673/)  -- Self Type
* [PEP 646](https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0646/)-- Variadic Generics
* The [Faster Cpython Project](https://github.com/faster-cpython) is already yielding some exciting results: this version of CPython 3.11 is ~12% faster on the geometric mean of the [PyPerformance benchmarks](speed.python.org), compared to 3.10.0.
 * Hey, **fellow core developer,** if a feature you find important is missing from this list, let me know.

The next pre-release of Python 3.11 will be 3.11.0a6, currently scheduled for Monday, 2022-02-28.

# More resources

* [Online Documentation](https://docs.python.org/3.11/)
* [PEP 664](https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0664/), 3.11 Release Schedule
* Report bugs at [https://bugs.python.org](https://bugs.python.org).
* [Help fund Python and its community](/psf/donations/).

# And now for something completely different

In physics, the Poynting vector (Umov-Poynting vector) represents the directional energy flux (the energy transfer per unit area per unit time) or power flow of an electromagnetic field. It is named after its discoverer John Henry Poynting who first derived it in 1884. Oliver Heaviside also discovered it independently in the more general form that recognises the freedom of adding the curl of an arbitrary vector field to the definition. The Poynting vector is used throughout electromagnetics in conjunction with Poynting’s theorem, the continuity equation expressing conservation of electromagnetic energy, to calculate the power flow in electromagnetic fields.

# We hope you enjoy those new releases!

Thanks to all of the many volunteers who help make Python Development and these releases possible! Please consider supporting our efforts by volunteering yourself or through organization contributions to the Python Software Foundation.

Your friendly release team,
Pablo Galindo @pablogsal
Ned Deily @nad
Steve Dower @steve.dower