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. 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:

    • 320.400: F, 12:45PM - 2:45PM, Hanes 107, Callum
    • 320.401: F, 12:45PM - 2:45PM, Stone Center 200, Can

  • Office Hours:

    • Dr. Mario for 320.001
      • MTWTh, 12:00PM - 12:45PM, Hanes 134
      • MTWTh, 2:45PM - 3:00PM, Hanes 134
    • Callum: M-F, 3:00PM - 3:30PM, Hanes 107
    • Can: M-F, 3:30PM - 4:00PM, Hanes B-01

  • 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
  • Bring your laptop and mobile phone to class

Course Material

Date Lecture Slides Supplement
MAY 14 Introduction Slides
Data Visualization Slides Preview(.zip)
MAY 15 Workflow in RMarkdown Slides
Data Transformation I Slides
Data Transformation II Slides
MAY 19 Data Transformation II (Cont.) Slides
Data Transformation III Slides
Data Transformation IV Slides
MAY 20 Exploratory Data Analysis I Slides
Exploratory Data Analysis II Slides
Final Project I Slides
MAY 21 Data Import Slides
Tidy Data I Slides
MAY 22 Tidy Data II Slides
Web Scraping Slides Preview(.zip)
MAY 26 Memorial Day (No Class) Remember Me
MAY 27 Web Scraping (Cont.) Slides Preview(.zip)
Joins I Slides
MAY 28 Joins II Slides
Factors Slides
Programming I Slides Preview(.zip)
MAY 29 Programming I (Cont.) Slides Preview(.zip)
Final Project II Slides
Midterm 1
JUNE 2 Final Project II (Cont.) Slides
Programming II Slides Preview(.zip)
JUNE 3 Programming III Slides
Modeling 1 Slides
JUNE 4 Modeling 1 (Cont.) Slides
Modeling 2 Slides Preview(.zip)
Modeling 3 Slides Preview(.zip)
JUNE 5 Modeling 4 Slides Preview(.zip)
Modeling 5 Slides
Modeling 6 Slides
JUNE 9 Modeling 7 Slides Preview(.zip)
Modeling 8 Slides Preview(.zip)
JUNE 10 Modeling 9 Slides Preview(.zip)
JUNE 11 R Shiny Slides Preview(.zip)
JUNE 12 Midterm 2
JUNE 17 Work on Project

Assignment Tracker

All HW, Lab, and Analysis 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) Analysis (A) Due Date (Time)
MAY 14 HW1(.zip) MAY 16 (5:00 PM)
MAY 16 L1(.zip) MAY 16 (11:59 PM)
MAY 16 HW2(.zip) MAY 19 (5:00 PM)
MAY 19 A1(.zip) MAY 21 (5:00 PM)
MAY 21 HW3(.zip) MAY 23 (5:00 PM)
MAY 23 L2(.zip) MAY 23 (11:55 PM)
MAY 23 HW4(.zip) MAY 28 (5:00 PM)
MAY 28 A2(.zip) MAY 30 (5:00 PM)
MAY 30 L3(.zip) MAY 30 (11:59 PM)
MAY 30 HW5(.zip) JUNE 2 (5:00 PM)
JUNE 2 A3(.zip) JUNE 6 (5:00 PM)
JUNE 4 HW6(.zip) JUNE 6 (5:00 PM)
JUNE 6 L4(.zip) JUNE 6 (11:59 PM)
JUNE 6 HW7(.zip) JUNE 9 (5:00 PM)
JUNE 9 A4(.zip) JUNE 13 (5:00 PM)
JUNE 13 L5(.zip) JUNE 13 (11:59 PM)

Final Project Details

Group Assignments

For the final project, students in STOR 320 will be divided into research groups of size 5 or 6. 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 MAY 27 (11:59PM)
P2 Exploratory Data Analysis Meeting + Canvas Survey 2 JUNE 5 (11:59PM)
P3 Final Written Paper Canvas Survey 3 JUNE 17 (11:59PM)
P4 Final Presentation (Section 2) Canvas + Class Survey 4 JUNE 20 (3:00PM)

Above Average Final Projects