BCB744 Introduction to R

1 Welcome

This section gathers the BCB744 Introduction to R material into one sequence: from opening RStudio for the first time to working with tidy data, figures, maps, and reproducible documents.

Use the detailed module page for timetable, assessment, and broader module context:

• BCB744 Module Overview
• Intro R Self-Assessment

1.1 What This Section Does

This section gets you comfortable with the workflow of a real analysis: organise files, import data, inspect what came in, transform it, plot it, and keep a record of what you did.

By the end of this section you should be able to:

• navigate RStudio and manage project-based work;
• import, inspect, and transform common tabular datasets;
• write and render Quarto documents;
• produce figures and maps with ggplot2; and
• organise data using tidy data principles.

1.2 Chapter Sequence

The sequence moves from:

1. getting started in R and RStudio,
2. working with data and Quarto,
3. graphics and mapping, and
4. tidy data workflows and recap.

1.3 Suggested Route Through the Material

Start here if you are new to R:

1. R and RStudio
2. Working With Data and Code
3. R Markdown and Quarto
4. Data Classes and Structures in R
5. R Workflows

Then move into visualisation and communication:

1. Graphics With ggplot2
2. Faceting Figures
3. Brewing Colours
4. Mapping With ggplot2
5. Mapping With Style

Then complete the data workflow block:

1. Mapping With Natural Earth and sf
2. The Fiji Earthquake Data
3. Tidy Data
4. Tidier Data
5. Tidiest Data
6. Synthesis
7. R Without Training Wheels

1.4 Assessment and Practice

Use these pages alongside the chapters:

• Intro R Self-Assessment
• Example 1
• Example 2
• Self-Assessment Form

1.5 Relationship to Biostatistics

The Intro R material prepares you for biostatistics by giving you the practical skills needed to read data, inspect distributions, visualise patterns, and document analyses clearly.

• Go to BCB744 Biostatistics