Jupyter is an integrated development environment that uses a notebook interface. It was originally developed for Python, but is now available for a variety of other languages, including my favorite, R. I attended a talk about Jupyter from one of the main developers, and after explaining what Jupyter is, he demonstrated JupyterLab. JupyterLab is a new IDE that uses the same structure and files as Jupyter. It looks to be very simple but also very powerful. Continue reading
Recommended: The five safes, designing data access for research
This is a nice overview of the various dimensions of security that you need to consider when making research data available on the Internet. Continue reading
Recommended: Leaflet, an open source Javascript library for mobile-friendly interactive maps
I have not tried this package but it was independently recommended by two separate sources that I have a lot of respect for. It uses a minimal computer interface to produce high quality interactive maps. Continue reading
Recommended: lavaan tutorial
I have not run too many Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), so I can’t comment too much about this resource, but anytime I see something like SEM features added to R, I have to rejoice. This page gives a nice tutorial introduction to lavaan, the R package for SEM, and the material is pitched at a level easy to follow even for people like me who have a limited appreciation for SEM terminology. Continue reading
Recommended: Python bindings for MPI
The Python Software Foundation supports PyPA, the Python Packaging Authority, a group that maintains an easy to use infrastructure for distributing Python software packages. I’ve used one of their sites, PyPI, to download mpi4py, a way to run Message Passing Interface applications within Python. Continue reading
PMean: Python, Raspberry Pi, and cluster computing
I’ve been experimenting with connecting a small number of Raspberry Pi in a cluster computer, and a good place to start is MPI (Message Passing Interface). Unfortunately, many of the books and websites that I have looked at use examples in C and FORTRAN. These are fine languages, but ones that I am unlikely to need in the future. I want to explore MPI from with a newer programming language, Python. Here are some resources I have leaned on in getting this started. Continue reading
Recommended: Cluster Hat 2.0
I am working on creating a cluster computer using three Raspberry Pis. Once I get that working, I might see what I can do with the smaller model, the Raspberry Pi Zero. If I did, this interface would be a good start. It sits on top of a regular Pi and connects up to four Pi Zeros to it. Continue reading
Recommended: MPI Tutorial Introduction
MPI (Message Passing Interface) is the grandfather of all parallel programming systems. It is a series of routines that you can call from FORTRAN or C++ programs, and was developed in the early 1990s. This tutorial is a slow and easy introduction to MPI. Continue reading
Recommended: r2d3: R Interface to D3 Visualizations
There’s an interesting visualization system called d3, that I only became aware of a few months ago. It uses a fairly minimal system, javascript and support vector graphics, but is capable of producing tremendously rich graphics. I’ve tried, when I have a few spare moments, to learn d3. It’s not that complicated, but I am hindered by a lack of knowledge about javascript. It’s also difficult to debug a d3 program. There’s a new library in R that should make things a bit easier for someone like me. It’s called r2d3 and is being promoted with the new preview release of RStudio. Continue reading
PMean: What day is it in my R program?
There are three different ways to find out inside your R program what day it is. Let’s quickly look at each. Continue reading