Often we have a graph with many bars (or categories) on the x or y axis. These categories may be sorted by descending response such as frequency of a % value. An example with simulated data is shown below. title 'Actual Values by Name'; proc sgplot data=bars2 noborder; vbar name /
The State of Illinois faces an unprecedented budget crisis, with more than $15 billion in unpaid bills. While experts will argue over the exact causes of states' financial struggles, many are pointing to the problem of state leaders avoiding long-term budgetary problems for short-term fixes. Illinois is not alone in
With all the recent talk about some people wanting to move from the US to Canada, I got to wondering how cold, and how far north Canada is. And after a few Google searches, I was surprised to learn that 27 US states are actually farther north than the southernmost point
In this post I describe the important tasks of data preparation, exploration and binning.These three steps enable you to know your data well and build accurate predictive models. First you need to clean your data. Cleaning includes eliminating variables which have uneven spread across the target variable. I give an
This is the fifth post in my series of machine learning best practices. Hyperparameters are the algorithm options one "turns and tunes" when building a learning model. Hyperparameters cannot be learned using that algorithm. So, these parameters need to be assigned before training of the model. A lot of manual
SG annotation is a powerful technique for adding text, lines, arrows, shapes, and images to graphs. This post provides a macro that can help you when you make a mistake in writing the annotations.
In spite of years of research and recommendations on bone health, we still have considerably high rates of osteopenia and osteoporosis in the US. That leads us to believe we haven’t yet uncovered all we need to know about protecting our bones. But, thanks to new research we’re learning new
Recently, I was asked whether SAS can perform a principal component analysis (PCA) that is robust to the presence of outliers in the data. A PCA requires a data matrix, an estimate for the center of the data, and an estimate for the variance/covariance of the variables. Classically, these estimates
Take a minute to think of all the television programs you have watched throughout your lifetime. For me? Arthur, The Rugrats, Doug, Full House, Family Matters, Clarissa Explains It All, The Jeffersons, The Golden Girls, Pete and Pete, The OC, Laguna Beach, The Office, Scrubs, Scandal, The Real Housewives of fill in
One key aspect of graphs used in the statistical or clinical research domains is the need to display numerical or textual information aligned with the data in the plot. Examples of such graphs are the Survival Plot or the Forest Plot. These graphs use the AXISTABLE statements available with SAS
If I’m having a tough week, I might feel sorry for myself for a minute or two. But to snap myself out of it, all I have to do is think of the data managers. Those folks have to contend with duplicate records, bad information, data proliferation, accountability, permissions, privacy,
Joyce Norris-Montanari says focus on data quality and governance, privacy and security when providing data on demand.
A SAS customer asked, "I computed the eigenvectors of a matrix in SAS and in another software package. I got different answers? How do I know which answer is correct?" I've been asked variations of this question dozens of times. The answer is usually "both answers are correct." The mathematical
It's a common mantra many parents use to encourage their children to expand their food choices and try something new. Even as adults we’re often more comfortable easing into the unfamiliar, taking small bites, tiny samples, even dipping a toe in the water before diving in headfirst. Software is no
Many years ago I shared a custom task that allows you to view and manage SAS catalogs within SAS Enterprise Guide. As a reminder, a SAS catalog is a special type of SAS file that acts as a container, like a folder, for a variety of content items called catalog
Yesterday I recommended Steve Morlidge’s The Little Book of Beyond Budgeting, for helping to illuminate the troubling usage of business forecasts in the traditional management / budgeting process. Steve reached out to me overnight with some additional points that he shares in this guest blogger post. Steve Morlidge on Forecasts
The dramatic drop in crude oil prices from the highs above $100USD per barrel down to levels around $50 per barrel is one of the drivers behind the industry’s march towards improved operating efficiency. Along the corridors of Independent Oil Companies (IOCs) and National Oil Companies (NOCs), machine learning and
In the spirit of my Forecasting Sharknadoes blog post, I now bring you Sunsquatch! In this blog post, I create a map that helps you find a location where you can see the total eclipse *and* have a chance of seeing Bigfoot (aka, Sasquatch)! But before we get into the nitty-gritty
In this post, I will review some of graphs from previous posts while concentrating on just the axes, grid lines, and reference lines. They might not be the most exciting parts of a graph, but there are multiple options that when properly used can turn a good graph into a great graph.
Provides strengthening for arms, back and core while lengthening spine Side Plank Pose (Sanskrit: Vasisthasana) From Plank, place right hand on mat under face. Shift to outside edge of your right foot. Your options for this pose are numerous. Top hand can be on waist or lifted towards sky. You can
Is There Something Beyond Budgeting? Forecasting is an integral part of the business planning and budgeting process. Presumably the forecast (which should be an "unbiased best guess" at what is really going to happen in the future) can provide a reasonable foundation upon which the annual budget and operating plans
When I first started teaching JMP classes for SAS Education 10 years ago, I sat in to observe a colleague teaching our introductory JMP data exploration course. The students had lots of questions about using JMP for their own projects, and were excited to learn about all the capabilities of
This is the fourth post in my series of 10 machine learning best practices. It’s common to build models on historical training data and then apply the model to new data to make decisions. This process is called model deployment or scoring. I often hear data scientists say, “It took
In the fifth post in this series we discussed the issues of the use of data mining and machine learning techniques. Today, I will present other commandments related to being prepared to compromise when implementing solutions based on the theory of statistics and being mindful in the interpretation of statistical significance
There will be a total solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, and the umbra (total shadow) will pass right across the United States! As a data guy, a map guy, and an astronomy fan, this is an opportunity I just couldn't pass up! Follow along as I apply my computer skills
In my prior posts (Data-driven SAS macro loops, Modifying variable attributes in all datasets of a SAS library, Automating the loading of multiple database tables into SAS tables), I presented various data-driven applications using SAS macro loops. However, macro loops are not the only tools available in SAS for developing
August’s move of the month is the Overhead Squat. It is a multi-joint movement that incorporates a squat as well as significant shoulder mobility and core strength. Although it seems quite simple, the technique takes time to learn, so start with something like a broomstick or PVC pipe to familiarize
Last week I blogged about the broken-stick problem in probability, which reminded me that the broken-stick model is one of the many techniques that have been proposed for choosing the number of principal components to retain during a principal component analysis. Recall that for a principal component analysis (PCA) of
Did you pay your taxes? From stiff penalties to even jail time, the federal government provides plenty of incentive for citizens to pay, but each year nearly one in five Americans do not pay on time. This leads to a more than $450 billion gap in unpaid taxes, creating a
Do you remember going to a sleepaway summer camp when you were a kid? I do! My first sleepaway camping experience was a Girl Scout camp when I was in fourth grade. My mom helped me pack my duffle bag. We selected a pair of shorts, t-shirt, underpants, and socks
