Аннотация

A hands-on guide to making valuable decisions from data using advanced data mining methods and techniques This second installment in the Making Sense of Data series continues to explore a diverse range of commonly used approaches to making and communicating decisions from data. Delving into more technical topics, this book equips readers with advanced data mining methods that are needed to successfully translate raw data into smart decisions across various fields of research including business, engineering, finance, and the social sciences. Following a comprehensive introduction that details how to define a problem, perform an analysis, and deploy the results, Making Sense of Data II addresses the following key techniques for advanced data analysis: Data Visualization reviews principles and methods for understanding and communicating data through the use of visualization including single variables, the relationship between two or more variables, groupings in data, and dynamic approaches to interacting with data through graphical user interfaces. Clustering outlines common approaches to clustering data sets and provides detailed explanations of methods for determining the distance between observations and procedures for clustering observations. Agglomerative hierarchical clustering, partitioned-based clustering, and fuzzy clustering are also discussed. Predictive Analytics presents a discussion on how to build and assess models, along with a series of predictive analytics that can be used in a variety of situations including principal component analysis, multiple linear regression, discriminate analysis, logistic regression, and Naïve Bayes. Applications demonstrates the current uses of data mining across a wide range of industries and features case studies that illustrate the related applications in real-world scenarios. Each method is discussed within the context of a data mining process including defining the problem and deploying the results, and readers are provided with guidance on when and how each method should be used. The related Web site for the series (www.makingsenseofdata.com) provides a hands-on data analysis and data mining experience. Readers wishing to gain more practical experience will benefit from the tutorial section of the book in conjunction with the TraceisTM software, which is freely available online. With its comprehensive collection of advanced data mining methods coupled with tutorials for applications in a range of fields, Making Sense of Data II is an indispensable book for courses on data analysis and data mining at the upper-undergraduate and graduate levels. It also serves as a valuable reference for researchers and professionals who are interested in learning how to accomplish effective decision making from data and understanding if data analysis and data mining methods could help their organization.

Аннотация

Focuses on insights, approaches, and techniques that are essential to designing interactive graphics and visualizations Making Sense of Data III: A Practical Guide to Designing Interactive Data Visualizations explores a diverse range of disciplines to explain how meaning from graphical representations is extracted. Additionally, the book describes the best approach for designing and implementing interactive graphics and visualizations that play a central role in data exploration and decision-support systems. Beginning with an introduction to visual perception, Making Sense of Data III features a brief history on the use of visualization in data exploration and an outline of the design process. Subsequent chapters explore the following key areas: Cognitive and Visual Systems describes how various drawings, maps, and diagrams known as external representations are understood and used to extend the mind's capabilities Graphics Representations introduces semiotic theory and discusses the seminal work of cartographer Jacques Bertin and the grammar of graphics as developed by Leland Wilkinson Designing Visual Interactions discusses the four stages of design process—analysis, design, prototyping, and evaluation—and covers the important principles and strategies for designing visual interfaces, information visualizations, and data graphics Hands-on: Creative Interactive Visualizations with Protovis provides an in-depth explanation of the capabilities of the Protovis toolkit and leads readers through the creation of a series of visualizations and graphics The final chapter includes step-by-step examples that illustrate the implementation of the discussed methods, and a series of exercises are provided to assist in learning the Protovis language. A related website features the source code for the presented software as well as examples and solutions for select exercises. Featuring research in psychology, vision science, statistics, and interaction design, Making Sense of Data III is an indispensable book for courses on data analysis and data mining at the upper-undergraduate and graduate levels. The book also serves as a valuable reference for computational statisticians, software engineers, researchers, and professionals of any discipline who would like to understand how the mind processes graphical representations.