A new book byΒ Jenine Harris, associate professor at the Brown School, introduces ΊΪΑΟΙηs to statistics using a narrative approach that makes the sometimes daunting subject approachable and useful.
ββ (Sage Publishing) draws on the open source R programming language and uses examples from the social and behavioral sciences to explain statistics concepts. The book follows three women characters, two data scientists and a ΊΪΑΟΙη, who meet at the community group βR-Ladiesβ and decide to work together to master the skills of statistical analysis and data visualization. In each chapter, the three characters meet and work through analyzing a real-world, publicly-available data set about aΒ contemporary issue like marijuana legislation, voter registration, or the opioid epidemic.
βThe main goal of this book is to prepare ΊΪΑΟΙηs and other readers for the messy and exciting reality of working with data,β Harris writes in the preface. βThe book aims to encourage women and other underrepresented groups to consider data science careers, and aims to improve the quality of social science through the promotion of reproducible research practices.β
The book has received positive reviews, including one from David A.M. Peterson of Iowa State University, who called it βeasily the most accessible and almost fun introduction to statistics and R that I have read.β
Harris has expertise in social network analysis, public health systems, and reproducible research. She is the co-founder and organizer ofΒ Β which is the local chapter ofΒ , an organization that focuses on improving gender diversity in the R community.