Course
Data Carpentry for Biologists
ALS 6501, 3 Credits, Fall 2024
Instructor
Dr. Ethan White (he/him)
Office: Room 1 Building 150
Email: ethanwhite@ufl.edu
Phone: 352-294-2081
Location
Times
Tuesdays, 12:50-1:40 pm ET
Fridays, 11:45-1:40 pm ET
Office Hours
Times: Fridays, 10-11 am
Location: Building 150
Or by appointment. Note: my schedule gets very busy during the semester so please try to schedule appointments as far in advance as possible. In general it will be very difficult to set up appointments less than 24 hours in advance.
Teaching Assistant
Virnaliz Cruz
Email: virnaliz.cruzher@ufl.edu
Website
The syllabus and other relevant class information and resources will be posted at http://www.datacarpentry.org/semester-biology. Changes to the schedule will be posted to this site so please try to check it periodically for updates.
Course Communications
Canvas: Messages in canvas are the preferred method for course communication
Email: ethanwhite@ufl.edu
Required Texts
There is no required text book for this class.
All needed material is openly available on the course website. If you are interested in additional reading on the topics we are covering I highly recommend R for Data Science, which is freely available on the web.
Course Description
An introduction to data management, manipulation, and analysis, with an emphasis on biological problems. Class consists of short introductions to new concepts followed by hands on computing exercises using R and SQLite, but the concepts apply to programming languages and databases more generally. No background in computing is required.
Prerequisite Knowledge and Skills
Knowledge of basic biology to provide context for exercises.
Purpose of Course
In this course you will learn all of the fundamental aspects of computer programming that are necessary for conducting biological research. By the end of the course you will be able to use these tools to import data into R, perform analysis on that data, and export the results to graphs, text files, and databases. By learning how to get the computer to do your work for you, you will be able to do more science faster.
Course Objectives and Goals
Students completing this course will be able to:
- Create well structured data
- Extract information from data
- Write computer programs in R
- Automate data analysis
- Apply these tools to address biological questions
- Apply general data management and analysis concepts to other programming languages and database management systems
How this course relates to the Student Learning Outcomes in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
This course contributes to the ‘Quantitative Skills’ and ‘Conducting and Analyzing Independent/Original Research’ Student Learning Outcomes specified in the Ph.D. and MS in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Academic Assessment Plans, by providing students the skills and knowledge they need to manage and analyze the data used in research.
Teaching Philosophy
This class is taught using a flipped, learner-centered, approach, because learning to program and work with data requires actively working on computers. Flipped classes work well for all kinds of content, but I think they work particularly well for computer oriented classes. If you’re interested in knowing more take a look at this great flipped classroom info-graphic.
Instructional Methods
Classes will involve brief introductions to new concepts followed by working on exercises in class that cover that concept. While students are working on exercises the instructor will actively engage with students to help them understand material they find confusing, explain misunderstandings and help identify mistakes that are preventing students from completing the exercises, and discuss novel applications and alternative approaches to the data analysis challenges students are attempting to solve.
Gender-Inclusive Restrooms
There are two gender-inclusive restrooms available in the building where the course is taught:
- 1st floor in Room 124
- 3rd floor in Room 304
There are also two gender-inclusive restrooms available in the building where the instructor’s office is located.
For more information on gender-inclusive restrooms at UF see the Gender-Inclusive restrooms page maintained by the Office for Accessibility and Gender Equity.
Course Policies
Attendance Policy
Attendance will not be taken or factor into the grades for this class. However, experience suggests that students who regularly miss class often struggle to learn the material.
Quiz/Exam Policy
There are no quizzes or exams in this course.
Make-up policy
Life happens and therefore there is an automatic grace period of 48 hours for the submission of late assignments with no need to request an extension. However, it is highly recommended that you submit assignments on time when possible because assignments build on one another and it can be hard to catch up if you fall behind. Reasonable requests for longer extensions will also be granted. Assignments turned in after the 48 hour grace period without an extension will be be graded with a 20% penalty.
Assignment policy
Assignments are due Monday night by 11:59 pm Eastern Time. This timing allows you to be finished with one week’s material before starting the next week’s material. Assignments should be submitted via either Posit Cloud (for R assignments) or Canvas (for other assignments).
Course Technology
Students are required to provide their own laptops and to install free and open source software on those laptops (see Setup for installation instructions). Support will be provided by the instructor in the installation of required software. If you don’t have access to a laptop please contact the instructor and they will do their best to provide you with one.
Materials and Supplies Fees
There are no materials and supplies fees for this course.
UF Policies
University Policy on Accommodating Students with Disabilities
The Disability Resource Center coordinates the needed accommodations of students with disabilities. This includes registering disabilities, recommending academic accommodations within the classroom, accessing special adaptive computer equipment, providing interpretation services and mediating faculty-student disability related issues.Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with the Dean of Students Office. The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation to the Instructor when requesting accommodation0001 Reid Hall, 352-392-8565, www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/
My policy: If you are in my class I want to help you learn and will happily work with you to make the learning environment work effectively for you.
Online Course Evaluation Process
Students are expected to provide professional and respectful feedback on the quality of instruction in this course by completing course evaluations online via GatorEvals. Guidance on how to give feedback in a professional and respectful manner is available at https://gatorevals.aa.ufl.edu/students/. Students will be notified when the evaluation period opens, and can complete evaluations through the email they receive from GatorEvals, in their Canvas course menu under GatorEvals, or via https://ufl.bluera.com/ufl/. Summaries of course evaluation results are available to students at https://gatorevals.aa.ufl.edu/public-results/.
University Policy on Academic Misconduct
Academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the University community. Students should be sure that they understand the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/students.php.
Netiquette and Communication Courtesy
All members of the class are expected to follow rules of common courtesy in all email messages, threaded discussions and chats.
Academic Honesty
As a student at the University of Florida, you have committed yourself to uphold the Honor Code, which includes the following pledge:”We, the members of the University of Florida community, pledge to hold ourselves and our peers to the highest standards of honesty and integrity. “You are expected to exhibit behavior consistent with this commitment to the UF academic community, and on all work submitted for credit at the University of Florida, the following pledge is either required or implied: “On my honor, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid in doing this assignment.”
It is assumed that you will complete all work independently in each course unless the instructor provides explicit permission for you to collaborate on course tasks (e.g. assignments, papers, quizzes, exams). Furthermore, as part of your obligation to uphold the Honor Code, you should report any condition that facilitates academic misconduct to appropriate personnel. It is your individual responsibility to know and comply with all university policies and procedures regarding academic integrity and the Student Honor Code.Violations of the Honor Code at the University of Florida will not be tolerated. Violations will be reported to the Dean of Students Office for consideration of disciplinary action. For more information regarding the Student Honor Code, please see: http://www.dso.ufl.edu/sccr/process/student-conduct-honor-code
Software Use
All faculty, staff and students of the university are required and expected to obey the laws and legal agreements governing software use. Failure to do so can lead to monetary damages and/or criminal penalties for the individual violator. Because such violations are also against university policies and rules, disciplinary action will be taken as appropriate.
Student Privacy
There are federal laws protecting your privacy with regards to grades earned in courses and on individual assignments. For more information, please see: http://registrar.ufl.edu/catalog0910/policies/regulationferpa.html
Grading Policies
The goal of grading in this class is to encourage practice, which is crucial to learning computing skills. Given that goal grading is based on weekly (equally weighted) assignments, with the focus of each assignment on practicing new material learned each week and reinforcing information learned earlier in the semester.
Because the goal is practice, exercises in assignments will be graded as follows:
- Code runs, uses the requested approach, and produces approximately the correct answer: 100%
- Attempts to solve the problem and makes some progress using the core concept, but does not produce approximately the correct answer or demonstrate basic comfort with the core concept: 50%
- Not submitted or no meaningful effort demonstrated: 0%
Students also enter the class with different levels of experience. The goal of assignments to is help students grow as computational scientists whether they are complete novices or have some limited background in coding. Therefore, on many assignments there are optional Challenge exercises that are both more difficult and require integrating all of the weeks material. Students who are already familiar with the basics may choose to submit Challenge exercises in place of regular exercises. One Challenge exercise counts for two regular exercises. Please indicate at the top of your assignment if you are substituting Challenge exercises.
Grading scale
- A 93-100
- A- 90-92.9
- B+ 87-89.9
- B 83-86.9
- B- 80-82.9
- C+ 77-79.9
- C 73-76.9
- C- 70-72.9
- D+ 67-69.9
- D 60-66.9
- E <60
UF grading policies for assigning grade points
https://catalog.ufl.edu/UGRD/academic-regulations/grades-grading-policies/
Campus Helping Resources
Students experiencing crises or personal problems that interfere with their general well-being are encouraged to utilize the university’s counseling resources. The Counseling& Wellness Center provides confidential counseling services at no cost for currently enrolled students. Resources are available on campus for students having personal problems or lacking clear career or academic goals, which interfere with their academic performance.
Health and Wellness
U Matter, We Care: If you or a friend is in distress, please contact umatter@ufl.edu or 352 392-1575 so that a team member can reach out to the student.
Counseling and Wellness Center: http://www.counseling.ufl.edu/cwc, 392-1575.
Sexual Assault Recovery Services (SARS): Student Health Care Center, 392-1161.
University Police Department: 392-1111 (or 9-1-1 for emergencies), or http://www.police.ufl.edu/.
Academic Resources
E-learning technical support: 352-392-4357 (select option 2) or e-mail to Learning-support@ufl.edu. https://lss.at.ufl.edu/help.shtml.
Career Connections Center: Reitz Union, 392-1601. Career assistance and counseling. https://career.ufl.edu/.
Library Support: http://cms.uflib.ufl.edu/ask. Various ways to receive assistance with respect to using the libraries or finding resources.
Teaching Center: Broward Hall, 392-2010 or 392-6420. General study skills and tutoring. https://teachingcenter.ufl.edu/.
Writing Studio: 302 Tigert Hall, 846-1138. Help brainstorming, formatting, and writing papers. https://writing.ufl.edu/writing-studio/.
Student Complaints
Student Complaints Campus: https://www.dso.ufl.edu/documents/UF_Complaints_policy.pdf.
On-Line Students Complaints: http://www.distance.ufl.edu/student-complaint-process.
Course Schedule
The details course schedule is available on the course website at: http://www.datacarpentry.org/semester-biology/schedule.