CS 5/631, Spring 2020

Final Project

Project Brief

Goal: To create a data visualization portfolio that includes the following:

Bio: A page that includes a short paragraph describing yourself.
Project Posts: 4 posts. Each post should feature one of your labs (pick ones that you are particularly proud of or interested in!).
Project “Final Visualization” Page: This should feature the slide deck for your verbal presentation.

Tools:

The website you make will need to be based off of R Markdown; feel free to build on the site you built for the blogdown lab.

Details

Bio: Please craft a short paragraph about yourself that is suitable for a professional audience. If you need instruction on how to craft a bio, please consult this excellent presentation by Dr. Letisha Wyatt and Robin Champieux.

Project Posts: Please use / build off of your labs and visualization brief from the class.

Final Visualization Project: Please build another visualization, using data of your choice, using the format below. Create a slide deck using the tool of your choice for a short, oral presentation of your final visualization. You will have 5 minutes to present your final project to the class. Given the remote nature of the class this term, the presentation will be presented remotely, but you should also prepare a recording to post on your site.

Format

All relevant R code to make the graph fully reproducible and the process in which you wrangled the data and plotted it fully comprehensible. This does not have to in one “chunk” but can be woven into your brief where it helps the reader trace what you did and why you did it.
Description of the DATA you used (either given to you or where you found it, what unique characteristics of the data, what quantitative and qualitative information is in the data set, etc.)
Description of the AUDIENCE you are aiming for (including more detail than simply saying “a biochemist”).
Description of the TYPE of graph (e.g. Bar chart, Sankey Dendogram, etc).
Representation Description: What are you trying to show?
How to read it & what to look for: How should a newbie to this graph approach interpreting it? What are the major highlights of the graph type?
Presentation: address how you are using annotation, color, and general composition (e.g. how are things arranged, scale, etc.)
How I created it: Methods section (see point 1: all relevant code should be included); additionally, include a bit about the process. Please include an early draft of your visualization (it might be a completely different), and why you changed it/what you tweaked to get to your final visualization.

FAQ

Q: Will I have time to continue to work on my webpage after my final presentation in class on June 9 or 11th? A: Yes – you can submit your final portfolio up to June 19th at 5PM.

Q: Do I need to use my own data for the final visualization?

A: No – if you don’t have available data, feel free to use one of our previous data sets (although you must create a different visualization and ask a different question), or find another acceptable dataset. If you need help identifying a dataset, please contact us! Good sources of inspiration include

Data is Plural: https://tinyletter.com/data-is-plural/archive
Kaggle: https://www.kaggle.com/
Git: https://github.com/awesomedata/awesome-public-datasets

Q: Does the final project need to be a completely different type of visualization?

A: No – however, you must show improvement in your visualization skills from your first visualization brief. We encourage you to expand your visualization skills, however we also value doing excellent work on a more standard plot. Exotic plots, although fun, aren’t always the best choices of visualizations! Remember to let your data guide your choice more than a fancy graph.

Q: Is there a required format for the slides?

A: No – use whichever tools or template are appropriate for the content you are presenting. Don’t worry about making the MOST BEAUTIFUL SLIDE in the Universe – keep it simple and understandable and all will be well!