Data Science can be defined as the intersection between mathematics/statistics, computer science, and communication. In this course, you will learn the entire process of data science: import, clean, explore, model, and communicate. This area of study is applicable to any student regardless of major, providing a competitive edge in the modern world. We will become proficient at the statistical computing language R. There will be one extensive group project giving all students the opportunity to apply their critical thinking and creativity skills to a dataset of their choice.

  • Instructor: Mario Giacomazzo

  • Lab Instructors:

  • Course Syllabus:

  • Lab Sections:

    • 520.400: M, 4:45PM - 5:35PM, Hanes 107
    • 520.401: W, 4:45PM - 5:35PM, Hanes 107

  • Office Hours:

    • Dr. Mario
      • M, 3:00PM - 4:00PM, Hanes 403
      • F, 2:00PM - 3:00PM, Hanes 403
    • Mark: Th, 11:00AM - 12:00PM, Hanes B-04

  • Attendance: UNC Check-in App

  • University Approved Absences: Online Form

  • Textbook: R For Data Science (R4DS)

Complete Before First Day

  • Bookmark this course website in your browser
  • Get familiar with the course website and Canvas
  • View the syllabus using the hyperlink on the course website
  • Download the UNC Check-in App on your Mobile Phone
  • Install R and R Studio to your laptop
  • Read Introduction in R4DS
  • Remember to bring your laptop and mobile phone to class

Course Material

Date Lecture Slides Supplement
JAN 7 Introduction Slides No Labs This Week
JAN 9 Data Visualization Slides Preview(.zip)
JAN 12 Workflow in RMarkdown Slides
JAN 14 Data Transformation I Slides
JAN 16 Data Transformation II Slides
JAN 19 MLK No Labs This Week
JAN 21 Data Transformation III Slides
JAN 23 Data Transformation IV Slides
JAN 26 Exploratory Data Analysis I Slides
JAN 28 Exploratory Data Analysis II Slides
JAN 30 Final Project I Slides
FEB 2 Data Import Slides
FEB 4 Tidy Data I Slides
FEB 6 Tidy Data II Slides
FEB 9 Well-being Day No Labs This Week
FEB 11 Web Scraping Slides Preview(.zip)
FEB 13 Joins I Slides
FEB 16 Joins II Slides
FEB 18 Midterm 1
FEB 20 Factors Slides
FEB 23 Programming I Slides Preview(.zip)
FEB 25 Programming II Slides Preview(.zip)
FEB 27 Programming III Slides
MAR 2 Final Project II Slides
MAR 4 Modeling 1 Slides
MAR 6 Modeling 2 Slides Preview(.zip)
MAR 9 Modeling 3 Slides Preview(.zip)
MAR 11 Modeling 4 Slides Preview(.zip)
MAR 13 Modeling 5 Slides
MAR 16 Spring Break No Labs This Week
MAR 18 Spring Break No Labs This Week
MAR 20 Spring Break No Labs This Week
MAR 23 Modeling 6 Slides
MAR 25 Modeling 7 Slides Preview(.zip)
MAR 27 Modeling 8 Slides Preview(.zip)
MAR 30 Modeling 9 Slides Preview(.zip)
APR 1 R Shiny Slides Preview(.zip)
APR 3 Best Friday Labs Will Occur This Week
APR 15 Midterm 2
APR 27 Work on Final Project No Labs This Week

Assignment Tracker

All HW, Lab, and Mini Project assignments are to be submitted via Canvas. Unzip folder and complete your homework using Rmd file. Midterms will be taken on paper in class. The table below shows all the assignments sorted by the assigned date.

Assigned Lab (L) Homework (HW) Mini Project (MP) Due Date (Time)
JAN 9 HW1(.zip) OPTIONAL
JAN 9 MP1(.zip) JAN 16 (5:00 PM)
JAN 12 L1(.zip) JAN 19 (4:45 PM)
JAN 16 HW2(.zip) OPTIONAL
JAN 16 MP2(.zip) JAN 23 (5:00 PM)
JAN 23 MP3(.zip) JAN 30 (5:00 PM)
JAN 26 L2(.zip) FEB 2 (4:45 PM)
JAN 30 HW3(.zip) OPTIONAL
JAN 30 MP4(.zip) FEB 13 (5:00 PM)
FEB 2 L3(.zip) FEB 9 (4:45 PM)
FEB 6 HW4(.zip) OPTIONAL
FEB 13 MP5(.zip) FEB 20 (5:00 PM)
FEB 16 L4(.zip) FEB 23 (4:45 PM)
FEB 20 HW5(.zip) OPTIONAL
FEB 20 MP6(.zip) MAR 6 (5:00 PM)
FEB 23 L5(.zip) MAR 2 (4:45 PM)
MAR 2 L6(.zip) MAR 9 (4:45 PM)
MAR 6 HW6(.zip) OPTIONAL
MAR 9 L7(.zip) MAR 16 (4:45 PM)
MAR 13 HW7(.zip) OPTIONAL
MAR 13 MP7(.zip) MAR 27 (5:00 PM)
MAR 23 L8(.zip) MAR 30 (4:45 PM)
MAR 27 MP8(.zip) APR 10 (5:00 PM)
MAR 30 L9(.zip) APR 6 (4:45 PM)
APR 6 L10(.zip) APR 13 (4:45 PM)
APR 13 L11(.zip) APR 20 (4:45 PM)
APR 20 L12(.zip) APR 27 (4:45 PM)

Final Project Details

Group Assignments

For the final project, students will be divided into research groups of size 4 or 5. To ensure fairness, students will be assigned randomly. Also, I will try to ensure that all students in your group are in your lab section.

If you want to find your research group, see the table below:

Four Roles

Although everyone is responsible for the entire project, each member of the group will be assigned a specific role for accountability and consistency. These four specific roles are described as follows:

  • The Creator: Schedule and Meet with Dr. Mario to Propose Your Group’s Research Idea, Lead Designer in Slides

  • The Interpreter(s): Schedule and Meet with Dr. Mario to Share Findings from Exploratory Analysis, Evaluate Practice Presentation

  • The Orator(s): Give a Captivating 3-5 Minute Slideshow Presentation During Final Exam Day

  • The Deliverer: Deliver Assignments to Canvas, Polished and On-time

Four Parts Including Point Values

This final project will be divided into four parts worth a total of 100 points. Each part will have a clear rubric as non-subjective as possible. The parts along with total point values are found below:

Due Dates of Individual Parts

Part Description Method of Submission Involvement Survey Due Date (Time)
P1 Project Proposal Meeting + Canvas Survey 1 FEB 11 (11:59PM)
P2 Exploratory Data Analysis Meeting + Canvas Survey 2 MAR 11 (11:59PM)
P3 Final Written Paper Canvas Survey 3 APR 27 (11:59PM)
P4 Final Presentation Canvas + Class Survey 4 APR 29 (12:00PM)

Above Average Final Projects