data d'Pender

A tutorial with Tableau Tableau is an intuitive and fast data visualization software program. In this tutorial, I'll be using Tableau Public, a free alternative to Tableau Desktop, to show you how you can quickly visually explore biodiversity datasets. The need for visualization Effective data visualization software can make a huge difference in modern informatics analysis pipelines. But why is data visualization important and will it continue to be important? What do the numbers all mean? Photo by  Mika Baumeister  on  Unsplash Firstly, data is accumulating at a speed never seen before. Technological advances have made data acquisition easier (Internet of Things, social and mobile networks etc.), data processing power fast, data storage cheap and data display devices ubiquitous. We are drowning in data, and need faster ways to make sense of it.   Secondly, humans are visual. While computers are adept at making sense of large sets of data quickly, humans struggle t

It is widely accepted that in the modern era, scientists cannot work in isolation. Collaboration is essential to achieving the level of productivity expected of a 21st century researcher. I believe this is a beneficial development of modern science. Several fields, such as economics and psychology, have concluded that groups are smarter than individuals (see the popular book The Wisdom of Crowds by journalist James Surowiecki for a synthesis). As a budding scientist (I'm still getting comfortable calling myself this, since I'm not too sure what I really am), I understand the importance of building a strong network of collaborators . They are essential in helping to refine your thinking, providing productive criticism to improve your work, and keeping your enthusiasm for your discipline alive. This is why I was extremely eager that my employer agreed to send me to the 2018 meeting of the Biodiversity Information Standards group ( TDWG ). TDWG is, to my knowledge, the on