Data Science A First Introduction

This book does a good bit right, the authors start assuming essentially no knowledge of R and build from there. Most of everything you learn in this book comes from the perspective of the Tidyverse, starting with basic functionality through machine learning models. You can tell that the authors are statisticians. The machine learning sections are well-written, not only teaching programming, but also the rationale for performing each procedure with excellent supporting graphics. Another point I want to make is that while it is clear they are statisticians, the book does not contain a series of unapproachable formulas that become a chore. Someone coming in with no R programming knowledge can quickly get started with this book, but I would also consider learning some basics of base R (loops and functions) that will open some more flexibility in R. Overall, I think this is an excellent resource for a beginner to learn Tidyverse programming and foundational ideas in machine learning. The free version of the book can be read at, https://datasciencebook.ca, and physical copies can be accessed through this commissioned link: https://amzn.to/3XPlNwQ.