Author: Christopher Policastro

Before we can understand a collection of data, we have to phrase the problem. The phrasing will allow us to compare different hypotheses according to metrics for evaluation.   Whether through a census, a survey, an experiment, or observations, we try to gather information from the data. We will learn methods for randomly and non-randomly gathering… Read more Formulating Problems

The data will inform the problems. Limits on the data will impose limits on the methods. Without methods we cannot approach the problems. The back-and -forth requires that we learn to acquire, manipulate and query the data. We will employ tools to organize and access the data in a tabular format. The tabular format will… Read more Handling Data

We will use packages to plot data. The graphs and charts will help us to look for what we believe is there and what we believe is not there. Exploration of the data will inform the approach to the problem. However, the relevance of the data to the problem needs assessment.  We will learn to… Read more Exploring Information

We will use data to fit models that will allow us to make predictions and inferences. Having learned metrics for accuracy and inaccuracy, we can assess the models. If the model generalizes to different situations, then we have confidence in the findings.    However, what do the findings say about the world? If the data… Read more Ethical Issues