I learned and taught Data Science tools during my studies. I've taught workshops various statistical software including R, RStudio, Stata, and SPSS. I have also written workshops on dynamic documents and LaTeX, and have taught tutorials on many R packages. Moreover, I've created tools to make learning and getting familiar with datasets like IGO, CINC Score, alliance, and sanctions datasets more accessible. The following are some of the products of these undertakings.
Dynamic Documents with Knitr
This workbook gives students an introduction to literate programing, reproducible research, and dynamic documentation using RStudio and the knitr package. (Contact me for a copy of the workbook.)
A Step-by-Step Introduction to LaTeX
This workbook gives students with little or no background in LaTeX the tools to write a research paper with this typesetting system.
I developed this game to help introduce and build intuition about statistical relationships. Try "Eyeball It!" here.
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Visualizations
Favor or Opposition for Expansion of Permanent Security Council Membership - by Country
The Presidential Election Campaign Check-Off
The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 required that, via a check-off by tax payers on their tax return, the money designated for the Presidential Election Campaign Fund be set aside. Taxpayers were given the choice of setting aside a few dollars ($1 to $3 depending on the year) of their tax money to contribute to the fund - at no additional cost to them. At first, more than a quarter of tax payers checked off the box to opt into the designation. Yet, since the implementation of this program, the percent of tax returns, making the designation has fallen off steadily. In fact, my reason for looking at this data was to see if, after the 2012 election---when neither candidate was opting to receive funds from the Presidential Campaign fund --- more of the public would drop its support of the program. Would there be a sharp drop-off in the check off? Data from the 2013 tax return season, however, shows the tax base unaffected by the fact that disbursement to presidential campaigns is so low. The steady decline in participation may be in part due to greater use of tax prep services and computer based tax preparation, as well as lowered awareness of the the Presidential Election Campaign Fund over time.
Publicly Funded Presidential Campaigns
This graph shows the disbursements from the Presidential Campaign fund since its inception. Disbursements steadily grow, in the general election until Barack Obama forgoes the funding in the 2008 election, as well as Republican counterpart Mitt Romney in 2012. In the Primaries, disbursements was generally on the rise through the 2000 presidential election. In 2004, the Republican nil payout is explained by the fact that George W. Bush faced no opposition in the primary. In 2008, primary candidates opted out of the matching funds, not wanting to be bound by fundraising limits if they did make it to the general election. While payouts for the Party convention has risen most steadily, in 2016 we will see disbursements drop off to as well due to the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act, which diverts cash saved from the abandoning the pay out to Presidential Nomination Party Conventions to use for children's cancer research.
Interactive Data Visualizations
My data visualizations allow students and scholars to explore classic political science data sets.
Go to Congress Roll Call Interactive
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Go to Alliance Network Interactive
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Go to IGO Networks Interactive
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Threat and Imposition of Sanctions Interactive (Currently inactive)
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Go to Composite Index of National Capability (CINC) Interactive (Currently inactive)
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