This course provides an an introduction to the world of data and how data can be used to answer questions that interest journalists, strategic communicators, and students of social sciences in general. This course emphasizes the critical connections between data analyses that would involve statistical processing of raw data and visualization strategies that would facilitate faithful, accurate, and compelling delivery of data insights to targeted audiences. It offers a combination of conceptual training, instruction in specific tools for data analysis and visualization, and the opportunity to put new skills to use in a final project.
Two Substances, One Danger: Impaired Driving Trends in Wisconsin
We wanted to explore motor vehicle crash statistics to find specific danger areas using Wisconsin DOT crash records. While exploring this data we found that several crash conditions proved to be the most fatal, despite frequency. Those conditions were alcohol and drug-related crashes. Thus, upon further analysis we aimed to understand other aspects of these conditions, including frequency, severity, and time trends to ultimately generate conclusions that advance understanding of impaired driving trends in Wisconsin and assist in later research for policy and societal interventions that effectively reduce impaired-driving fatalities overall.
U.S. Border Crossing Trends, 2018-2024
Border crossing has been prevalent in American history since the country’s very founding. Early American settlers crossed the colonial borders of the Appalachian mountains into the Ohio River Valley. Furthermore, Manifest Destiny motivated American settlers again West past their country’s borders into lands owned by Native Americans and Mexicans. In modern times, American political debates ring back and forth over border security and immigration. With such a storied topic still so important after all these hundreds of years, our group decided to focus on the more contemporary chapter in this saga. As such, we devised two separate research questions to guide our study. Our first research question is: “How have U.S. border crossings changed over time, by region and method of entry, and what insights can stakeholders use to improve transportation planning, resource allocation and policy decisions?” Our second research question is: “What operational patterns are shown from comparing U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada border activity?”
Shop 'Til You Drop
In order to better understand the success of our campaigns across customer segments, we developed a variety of graphs that examine conversion rates within target segments, ROI by campaign type and customer segment, and ROI versus conversions narrowing on a specific customer age segments.
Hotel Review Characteristics Based on Reviewer Nationality
Using a sample of 50,000 reviews of European hotels from Booking.com, we coded five visualizations in R language to demonstrate trends in review sentiment and habits of different reviewers from around the world.
How Do County Types and Gender Influence Voting Patterns
This project looks at how geographic location and gender influenced voting patterns in the 2016 presidential election. Using state and county data, we examined which places leaned toward each candidate and what factors might explain those differences. By comparing vote shares, total votes, and gender turnout across states, we aimed to get a clearer picture of the demographic and geographic trends that shaped the election.
How Does the Rise of Local News Deserts Impact America?
This project investigates the growth of “news deserts” across the United States—communities with little or no access to local newspapers. Using data from the U.S. Census and Northwestern University’s Medill Local News Initiative, we analyzed how rural and low-density areas are disproportionately affected by the decline of local journalism and proposed strategies to improve news access and community engagement.
County-Level Trends in Grocery Store Access In Wisconsin
Limited grocery access contributes to food insecurity and public health disparities. This study utilizes the USDA Food Environment Atlas data to examine how food access has changed across Wisconsin counties from 2010 to 2015.
Remote Work and Mental Health
We explored how different work locations impact employee stress and mental well-being in the post-COVID workplace. Using a large simulated dataset, our findings highlight the growing role of social isolation in remote work and emphasizes the importance of connection, support systems, and intentional workplace design.