David Ranzolin

This is the first post in a new series I’m calling How’d they do that? Motivated by professional curiosity and personal jealousy, I will identify, expose, and interpret stumble through the secrets hidden within my fellow #rstats enthusiasts’ repos. The exposition will not be exhaustive; curiosity is a fickle thing,... [Read More]

I recently had the privilege of reviewing internal award nominations. In a secret duel of persuasion, hundreds of employees seized the opportunity to outboast their colleagues in boasting about their colleagues. Letterhead was prepared, anecdotes collected, and thesaureses consulted.1 I’m told the plural of “thesaurus” can also be “thesauri”. ↩ [Read More]

Being introduced to a new R package is like going on a really good first date–you wish you had met the person sooner, you imagine doing all sorts of fun things together in the future, and you can’t wait to blog about the experience. Okay, maybe just the first two.... [Read More]

I like cats more than other animals. Alongside their evolutionary advantages–retractable claws, night vision, a tail, lighting reflexes, etc.–Mother Nature imbued these creatures with grace, majesty, and personalities unequaled within the animal kingdom. Don’t @ me. [Read More]

One of my most prized possessions is The Complete Calvin and Hobbes, the undisputed greatest comic of all time. I defy anyone to name a strip more hilarious, more cohesive, more emblematic of the vicissitudes of life. I’ve read and reread those volumes countless times, and I rank both Calvin... [Read More]

Earlier today I fantasized about publishing a book through O’Reilley Media. Besides producing dozens of essential works on programming, data science, and UX, they’re the ones responsible for introducing IT folk to the African Civit, the Binturong, and my persona favorite, the Springhaas. Would zoology textbooks with terminal prompts and... [Read More]