Graphics in R

Dr. Paul Murrell

Aim of Course:

The aim of this course is to teach you how to produce statistical plots of data using the R language and environment for statistical computing and graphics.

We will cover the creation of standard plots such as scatterplots, bar plots, histograms, and boxplots and we will spend some time on the underlying model used to produce plots in R so that you can extensively customize these plots.

We will also look at producing Trellis plots in R and how to customize them.

Finally, we will introduce the grid graphics system and look at producing unique plots from the ground up using basic components.

Who Should Take This Course:

Anyone who needs to produce displays of data, whether for exploratory or confirmatory analysis.

R graphics is particularly suited to producing publication-quality plots, so this course is particularly useful for anyone who needs to produce articles or reports or even web sites containing plots.

Course Program:

The course is structured as follows

The Instructor:

Dr. Paul Murrell is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Statistics at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Paul has been a member of the core development team for R since 1999, with a focus on the graphics system in R. He is the past Chair of the Section for Statistical Graphics of the American Statistical Association. He has recently served as Editor-in-Chief of R News, the newsletter of the R project, and is an Associate Editor for Computational Statistics and The Journal of Statistical Software.

Organization of the Course:

The course takes place over the internet, at statistics.com. During each course week, you participate at times of your own choosing - there are no set times when you must be online. Course participants will be given access to a private discussion board. In class discussions led by the instructor, you can post questions, seek clarification, and interact with your fellow students and the instructor. The course is scheduled to take place over 4 weeks, and typically requires 10-15 hours per week. At the beginning of each week, you receive the relevant material, in addition to answers to exercises from the previous session. During the week, you are expected to go over the course materials and work through exercises. Discussion among participants is encouraged. The instructor will provide answers and comments.

Certificates and Grades:

You may be interested only in learning the material presented, and not be concerned with grades or certificates. Or you may be enrolled in a statistics.com Professional Advancement Program that requires demonstration of proficiency in the subject, in which case your work will be assessed for purposes of issuing a grade. Or you may require only a "Certificate of Course Completion," along with professional development credit in the form of Continuing Education Units (CEU's). As you begin the class, you will be asked to specify your category.

Credit:

This course offers continuing education units (CEU's). For those successfully completing the course (generally this means marks of 50% or better on the homework), 5.0 CEU's and a certificate will be issued by statistics.com, upon request.

Dates:

May. 2 - May. 30, 2008
Nov. 7 - Dec. 5, 2008
May. 1 - May. 29, 2009
Click here to be notified of future course offerings.

Participants gain access to the online materials on the first day of the course, and typically spend about 10-15 hours per week (at their convenience). You retain full access to course materials, including discussion board, for two weeks after the course closing date.

Level:

Introductory/Intermediate

Prerequisite:

Participants should have a basic familiarity with R. The course Introduction to R would be helpful, but is not essential. Note that the course will work only with the R command line (rather than any of the R GUI options).

Course Text:

The course text is R Graphics by Paul Murrell. You may order it from the CRC Press website by clicking here, or by using this form. CRC Press typically gives students a generous discount when students order the text using the above form (not by ordering the text online). Be sure to purchase your copy of the text prior to the course starting date.

Software:

Course illustrations and homework assignments will use R. If you are installing R for the first time, just get the latest version. If you already have R installed, but the version is older than 2.2.1, please upgrade to the latest version. Assistants will be able to offer feedback on assignments completed using R. For information on obtaining R (version 2.2.1), click here.

Registration:

Register Online - $449
Register Online (academic) - $349 (you must be affiliated with a college, university or high school)

Add $50 service fee if you require a prior invoice, or if you need to submit a purchase order or voucher, pay by wire transfer or EFT, or refund and reprocess a prior payment. Please use this printed registration form, for these and other special orders.

Note: Courses may fill up at any time and registrations are processed in the order in which they are received. Your registration will be confirmed for the first available course date, unless you specify otherwise.