Overview

What are we doing here?

This is a quick and dirty introduction to data analysis in R. The goals are to:

  • introduce how to analyze data in R
  • introduce how to visualize data in R

It is not anything resembling a course on statistics and data science.

I am a petty dictator, and have added some goals about things I care about:

  • learn how to interpret a regression model
  • learn why quantative social scientists answer questions they way they do

Why sharks?

A representative article

A quote from said article

Consider the curious case of New Jersey in 1916: That summer, there was a string of deadly shark attacks along the Jersey Shore. As a result, Woodrow Wilson lost his home state in the presidential election.

Why, you ask? Because the beachfront towns (which rely on tourism) were negatively impacted by the attacks. Though Wilson wasn’t responsible for the hungry sharks, he was the incumbent, and people vote against incumbents when things are bad.

Democracy for Realists

The Discourse I

The Discourse II