R for the Rest of Us

In this episode, I chat with Nick Tierney, a statistician, data scientist, and creator of the {naniar} R package for exploring missing data. Nick reflects on his journey from a psychology undergrad to a PhD in statistics, and how open-source tools—and a deeply curious mindset—shaped his path.
We discuss Nick’s early struggles with R, the importance of community, and his evolution into package development and consulting. He also walks through the why and how of testing R packages, making the case for better, more reliable code.
Resources mentioned:
{naniar} package

Books: (1) The R Book by Michael Crawley, and (2) R Packages by Hadley Wickham and Jenny Bryan

Connect with Garrick on Bluesky and GitHub

In this episode I sit down with Garrick Aden-Buie, a senior software engineer at Posit (formerly RStudio), to explore his latest project: brand.yml. This innovative tool aims to simplify and unify branding across various data science outputs, including Quarto documents, Shiny apps, and more.
Garrick shares the inspiration behind brand.yml, stemming from his experiences in creating custom theming solutions at different organizations. Recognizing the repetitive nature of this task, he developed brand.yml to serve as a single source of truth for styling, enabling consistent application of brand guidelines across multiple platforms.
Important resources mentioned:
brand.yml project page
GitHub repo
BSLib article on unified theming
Blog post ‘Unified branding across Posit tools with brand.yml’ by Sarah Altman
Connect with Garrick on LinkedIn, Bluesky and Mastodon. Visit his Website to learn more.
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In this episode, I sit down with Robert Smith, co-founder of Dark Peak Analytics, to discuss his journey from academia to advising the UK government during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rob shares his experience building data models that directly influenced public health policy and decision-making at the highest levels. We also dive into his work with Parkrun, a community-driven initiative promoting equitable access to physical activity, and how he used R to analyze participation patterns and improve accessibility.
Rob's insights into health economics, simulation modeling, and the challenges of transitioning industries provide valuable lessons for data professionals.
Important resources mentioned:
Dark Peak Analytics
Academic Papers:
https://wellcomeopenresearch.org/articles/5-9
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0033350620304066
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1353829221001222
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12889-024-20420-0
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/19004143v1.full.pdf
Map: https://iolmap.shinyapps.io/parkrun/
Parkrun
Connect with Robert on:
LinkedIn: Robert Smith 

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In this episode, I chat with Simon Couch, a software engineer at Posit, about his work on AI-powered R packages. Simon maintains open-source statistical software and explores how AI can streamline coding workflows. We discuss his journey from statistics and sociology to AI-driven tooling, his development of the PAL and Gander packages, and why AI won’t replace coding anytime soon—but can definitely make it easier. 
Improtant resources mentioned:
Simon’s blog
Tidyverse blog post on PAL & Gander
Connect with Simon on: 
LinkedIn: Simon P. Couch
Bluesky: @simonpcouch.com
Mastodon: @simonpcouch@fosstodon.org
X: @simonpcouch‬
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In this episode, I chat with Terence Teo, Professor at Seton Hall University and expert in creating stunning 3D maps using the {rayshader} package in R. Terence discusses his journey into data visualization, specifically his use of R and the RayShader package to create mesmerizing 3D maps. Terence shares insights from his academic background in political science, his creative process for making maps, and how he balances artistic flair with technical rigor. The discussion dives into geospatial data, the intricacies of the {rayshader} and {rayrender} packages, and the value of experimentation in visual storytelling.
Important resources mentioned:
River Basins of the Iberian Peninsula: https://bsky.app/profile/tterence.bsky.social/post/3kdbsv4bbc32k
GitHub repo of code used
Connect with Terence on:  
X: @researchremora
Bluesky: @tterence.bsky.social‬
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