GDPR and EU personal data: Some considerations
Joyce Norris-Montanari starts this two-part series with some suggested actions you can take to help you comply with the GDPR.
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Converting your old SAS jobs to use the new GfK maps
Do you procrastinate and find excuses to delay doing certain things, even when you know they really ought to be done? And you probably realize that starting those projects is usually the hardest part, eh? Well, I finally started converting hundreds of my SAS examples to use the new GfK maps,
The probability of a saddle point in a matrix
Many people know that a surface can contain a saddle point, but did you know that you can define the saddle point of a matrix? Saddle points in matrices are somewhat rare, which means that if you choose a random matrix you are unlikely to choose one that has a
Series plot with varying attributes
This article is motivated by a recent question on the SAS Communities board. This user wants to create a series or spline plot where the attributes of the line (color, thickness) can be changed based on another variable. In this case it may be a binary variable with "0" and
Is it sensitive? Mask it with data suppression
Report data shared by educational institutions, government agencies, healthcare organizations, and human resource departments can contain sensitive or confidential data. Data in such reports are suppressed selectively to protect the identities of individuals or to prevent the report’s audience from easily inferring individual values. The Data Suppression feature in SAS
Three energy trends that are actually IoT opportunities
You’ve probably heard the stats about the number of internet-connected devices, which make up the Internet of Things (IoT). Most likely, you’re part of the narrative. We're all connected in new ways and through more devices than ever before. Sometimes IoT impacts our daily lives – safety sensors on cars,
Admin Notebook: Making the case for selectively backing up metadata
Let’s say that you are administering a SAS 9.4 environment that is working just fine. You’ve checked that your full backups are indeed happening and you’ve even tried restoring from one of your backups. You are prepared for anything, right? Well, I’d like to propose a scenario to you. You
How to Stay Committed to Clean Eating When Life Inserts Itself
It’s been quite an interesting Winter, one that was predicted by the Farmer’s Almanac to be cold and wet. Cold? Not so much. Wet? Painfully so! Parts of it have been beautiful, though, including an unexpected snow storm in January that covered our area in 10 – 12 inches of
Solve a system of nonlinear equations with SAS
This article shows how to use SAS to solve a system of nonlinear equations. When there are n unknowns and n equations, this problem is equivalent to finding a multivariate root of a vector-valued function F(x) = 0 because you can always write the system as f1(x1, x2, ..., xn)
Dutch Data Science, Part 5: Notilyze
Part 5 of this series brings us to Rotterdam again, where I met with the two Notilyze founders Colin Nugteren and Tom Dogger. Both of them studied econometrics in Rotterdam, but go back as far as the F4 soccer team they were both playing in as kids. Company overview The
SAS exhibiting at IBF New Orleans (April 23-25)
Please join me and my colleague Charlie Chase, for the IBF's Predictive Business Analytics Forecasting & Planning Conference in New Orleans (April 23-25). Charlie and I will be staffing the SAS booth, and available to answer your SAS forecasting questions, or provide a software demonstration. Also, fill out a short
A conversation with SAS Global Forum 2018 Chair Goutam Chakraborty
Goutam Chakraborty is a busy man. In addition to serving as SAS professor of marketing analytics at Oklahoma State University, Dr. Chakraborty is the director and founder of the SAS and Oklahoma State University MS in Business Analytics and an award winning author and professor. He teaches courses in such areas as business
Getting started with SGPLOT - Part 11 - Penalized B-Spline Plot
You can use penalized B-splines display a smooth curve through a set of data. The PBSPLINE statement fits spline models, displays the fit function(s), and optionally displays the data values.
The Inspiration of Things: technology shines at youth chess tournament
Chess has been intertwined with Computer Science since, well ... forever. Long before supercomputer Deep Blue, loaded with human-crafted chess algorithms, beat reigning world champion Garry Kasparov in 1997. Well before AlphaZero AI defeated all of human chess knowledge with just a few hours of study. Way before computers even
The Myth of the BFF
I remember going to a workshop about grief a few years back. At one point, the speaker talked about various types of support grieving folks need after the typical mourning rituals have receded and life continues on. He asked the workshop participants to pull out a sheet of paper and
Is quick response forecasting a reality or just another buzzword?
“Quick response forecasting (QRF) techniques are forecasting processes that can incorporate information quickly enough to act upon by agile supply chains” explained Dr. Larry Lapide, in a recent Journal of Business Forecasting column. The concept of QRF is based on updating demand forecasts to reflect real and rapid changes in demand, both
How to use FIRST.variable and LAST.variable in a BY-group analysis in SAS
My article about the difference between CLASS variables and BY variables in SAS focused on SAS analytical procedures. However, the BY statement is also useful in the SAS DATA step where it is used to merge data sets and to analyze data at the group level. When you use the
HBar with Data Labels
A common request on the communities page is to place data labels on horizontal bar charts. Often users want to display stacked horizontal bar charts, with the values displayed for each segment and the overall value of the bar itself as shown in the example below. In this example, the
SGMAP: Using MAPIMPORT for Polygon Maps
An earlier SGMAP blog used the BUBBLE statement to overlay point data on top of an Open Street Map. However, not all map features are points. Some are enclosed areas called polygons. Some map polygons share common borders such as states and counties. Others are separate, non-contiguous regions such as national parks
Bringing the True You to the Table While Dating
Thank you to Katie Pape, LPC for this Friday's guest post for the Work/Life Center 2018 Relationship Series. In a new relationship or a first date scenario, you might think you have to downplay who you are or change your persona to get a needed laugh from your interesting date,
Anticipating data privacy concerns
David Loshin looks at two levels of data privacy concerns: exposure, and fair use of personal information.
The ADHD Effect on Relationships
Thanks to Amelia Kelley, PhD for this guest blog post for the Work/Life February Relationship Series. Trying to date and find a meaningful relationship can pose challenges to most any person who has ever tried. But when these challenges are coupled with a diagnosis of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, otherwise known
Getting started with SGPLOT - Part 10 - Regression Plot
The REG statement fits linear regression models, displays the fit functions, and optionally displays the data values. You can fit a line or a polynomial curve. You can fit a single function or when you have a group variable, fit multiple functions.
A Monte Carlo algorithm to estimate a median
This article describes and implements a fast algorithm that estimates a median for very large samples. The traditional median estimate sorts a sample of size N and returns the middle value (when N is odd). The algorithm in this article uses Monte Carlo techniques to estimate the median much faster.
Beam your customers into invisibility: a data protection masked ball to get you up to speed with the GDPR
Here are some new tips for masking. The new EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires your company to implement (quote) all necessary technical and organizational measures and to take into consideration the available technology at the time of the processing and technological developments. So, how can you comply with
Pseudonymagical: masking data to get up to speed with GDPR
You work with data. Data about your customers. It's likely that your customers' identity could be determined from the data you’ve collected. Starting in May 2018, a new data protection law will be in effect. This means you’re going to have to document which technical measures you’ve implemented to prevent your
Caregiving and Relationships
Work/Life is focusing on relationships during the month of February. As the Eldercare Program Manager, I often work with individuals who are caregivers – trying to balance the caregiving role with their spouse/significant other relationship. While some who provide care to their spouse feel the experience strengthens the bond between
Examining 200k+ Russian troll tweets
Unless you live under a rock, you've probably seen news reports that Russian trolls have been posting on social media to allegedly conduct "what they called information warfare against the United States, with the stated goal of spreading distrust toward the candidates and the political system in general," according to
Survival plot with a twist using SGPLOT procedure
Survival plots are automatically created by the LIFETEST procedure. These graphs are most often customized to fit the needs of SAS users. One way to create the customized survival plot is to save the generated data from the LIFETEST procedure, and then use the SGPLOT procedure to create your custom
Six new SAS books for 2018
Start off the New Year by brushing up your SAS programming skills! Begin your goal to become SAS certified or explore these New SAS books and other SAS Press titles, many of which will be making their bookshelf debut at SAS® Global Forum 2018 in Denver, CO! Want to be notified when a new book