Tag Archives: blogpost

#Blogpost: Intro to R Workshop.

On Thursday, October 11, 2024, at about 6 pm, I attended an insightful introduction to R workshop organized by Zachary Lloyd and Chen Zou, fellows at the Graduate Center Digital Initiatives (GCDI). The session was aimed at beginners and focused on the essentials of using R, an open-source programming language widely utilized for statistical analysis, data transformation, survey analysis, Machine Learning, etc.

While the w/shop was ongoing, I took minutes of the session, noting down highlights which made me miss some initial concepts in setting up the software for practice. I privately chatted with Chen during the workshop who was truly patient in carrying me along irrespective of my slow-paced learning curve of the tool. We were asked to create a posit account, which enabled us to access R on a cloud for practice.

The session began by distinguishing between R and RStudio, where R serves as the engine – the core programming language, while RStudio serves as the user-friendly interface (UI) where coding, data visualization, and manipulation take place that allows users to interact with R seamlessly. The instructor also introduced foundational concepts like Boolean operations (1/0, TRUE/FALSE, YES/NO), arithmetic functions (+,-, /,*), and vectors – which she mentioned are lists of items or variables of the same type. We also learned basic R syntax such as how to assign values to variables using the “<-” operator and how logical operations like `==` (equal to) and `!=` (not equal to) work in R.

One of the key takeaways was the instructor’s reiteration of the importance of practicing typing out codes instead of often falling for the temptation of copying and pasting, as it helps build muscle memory. The workshop also emphasized the value of making mistakes, which is a major part of the learning process in programming. As she mentioned, “Every programming language takes time to understand. It just takes consistent practice to become the best at it”.

We explored libraries like Tidyverse, a collection of packages designed to simplify data wrangling and visualization in R. Functions such as `view()` and `head()` were demonstrated for examining data, with the former opening a new page in RStudio and the latter displaying default the first six rows of a dataset in the console.

After being shown several examples, we did some practice exercises that enabled us to get a glimpse of how R functions. Most of my colleagues in the workshop seemed to be getting it, as there were multiple correspondences on the Zoom chat bar, which also meant that the workshop was hands-on.

On a final note, the workshop was a good introduction to R, emphasizing the importance of continuous practice and exploration. Whether for data visualization, machine learning, or statistical analysis, R offers a flexible and powerful toolset for data professionals.

Interestingly, the workshop ended at 8:04 pm with a Google digital evaluation form, which made me reflect on the increasing importance of digital documentation and feedback within digital humanities. As a potential digital humanist, every evaluation or rating not completed on a digital platform might as well be considered non-existent, reinforcing the role of digital tools in modern academic and research processes.

– Kelechi Iwuagwu (A Data Analysis & Viz CUNY GradCenter Candidate).

Reflecting on “The Possibly Impossible Research Project”, while embracing Failure for intellectual progress.

In “The Possibly Impossible Research Project,” Rebekah Fitzsimmons and Suzan Alteri introduced first-year students at Georgia Tech to archival research focused on forgotten women authors of science books from the Romantic and Victorian (1770s – 1830s) periods. This collaboration with the Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature aimed to expose students to the systemic marginalization of women in the sciences and challenge the idea that women were historically uninvolved in STEM. At an institute that admitted female students into regular classes only in 1952, this feminist-oriented assignment provided an eye-opening opportunity for students to research the overlooked contributions of women to scientific advancement.

Students encountered numerous frustrations as they struggled to locate biographical information for the assigned authors. The challenge reflected real-world research setbacks, pushing students to ask why so little documentation existed about these intellectual lionesses. Their frustrations often became evident through class discussions and social media exchanges. Alongside conventional research methods, students used digital tools like Twitter and WordPress to document their process, fostering collaboration and building professional research skills.

Through this process, students contributed to the recovery of forgotten histories, shedding light on how women’s writing in science education shaped scientific discourse. This initiative illustrates the value of archival research in undergraduate education, promoting both discovery and the importance of documenting the research journey, even when it’s incomplete.

Moreover, Fitzsimmons’ varying approach challenged the conventional classroom dynamic, where students expect professors to have all the answers. This new model allowed students to grapple with failure and setbacks, learning to persist through “brick walls” and to explore creative solutions—valuable lessons that they will carry into future research and professional endeavors.

Digital Humanities – In My Own Words

What defines a profession is not only what it does, but also what values it upholds and how it practices “professional responsibility”.

Spiro 2012

Digital Humanities is a discipline that employs digital tools and methodologies to experiment and find innovative ways to conduct critical inquiries, democratize data, tap the “collective creative potential’ to build projects and disseminate collaborative interdisciplinary research in an open, transparent, interactive form designed to reach a larger audience. Even that long-winded attempt at a definition probably does not cover all the critical aspects.

Digital Humanities aspires to be a platform that fosters inclusivity, cultural diversity and equitable access while embracing civic responsibility and provoking necessary conversations to inspire societal change. 

The young discipline demonstrates an earnest intention to build on the knowledge of the traditional humanities in the digital age and redress the failings inherited from traditional scholastic practice. DH hopes to achieve these goals by welcoming diverse voices into the conversation, focusing on interdisciplinary approaches and making space for collaborative research.   

The discussion of accessibility and inclusion in our readings is reflected in the features visible in all the listed sites/projects—namely the organized presentation of mined data, themes engaging underrepresented communities and the collaborative effort of like minded scholars from different disciplines. The sites arrange the content in various accessible forms including data visualizations (maps/charts), the text component, the compilation of objects in exhibits or archives and interactive elements that allow the user to participate actively in the way they choose to consume the content.

The “Torn Apart” project, for instance, takes on the humanitarian crisis that extends beyond the US border and showcases the disenfranchised voices through visualizations of the human fallout of immigration policies. The tragedy of immigrant detention is inescapable as one views the dense accumulation of orange dots splattered across the US landscape and statistics that are no longer mere numbers. The extent of the incarceration juxtaposed against the economics and politics reveals the grim reality of the business of immigration detention. The project team documents their responsible consideration and ethical decisions around the kind of data that could be revealed about the vulnerable population.

Evident in each of the projects is DH’s implied goal to address the pitfalls that are a product of the systemic biases inherited from the traditional disciplines.

Revisiting the idea of a definition in light of these projects shows a continued emphasis on representation, inclusivity, accessibility, social responsibility and collaboration. DH recognizes that the inclusion of underrepresented voices adds value and addressing the complications of inviting disparate voices is a necessity to build a more representative scholastic community. The field appears to resist the act of being boxed into a restrictive definition and the fluidity of the proposed definitions reflect its constantly evolving values and expanding community—a community that welcomes debates and challenges to prevalent DH practices. 

Despite the best of intentions, the control continues to be with the traditionally dominant Western voice. Perhaps instead of finding ways to expand acceptance of non-Western scholarly practices so they fit into the existing canon, the scholastic community should seek the conditions acceptable to the ones left in the fray. How could global scholars contribute to the conversation and retain agency on the terms of their engagement with the digital humanities thereby countering “representational inequality” and represent true inclusiveness? The self-awareness of the DH community will question any complacency that sets in and encourage the constant revival of our commitment to the core values of the group.

In all likelihood the definition of Digital Humanities will continue to evolve reflecting the emerging values of an increasingly diverse community that aspires to be global in the true sense of the word.