2) R Vectors

📖 Lecture

In this unit we describe data types and their implementation as vectors (the most fundamental data object in R). We’ll focus on important concepts like:

  • main data types (“atomic types” in R): logical, integer, real (or double), and character.

  • creation of vectors: various ways and functions to create vectors.

  • implicit coercion rules: what R does when you combine values of different data types.

  • vectorization: when R applies calculations or operations to all the elements of a vector (element-wise).

  • recycling: what R does when you perform a calculation with vectors of different length.

  • subsetting (aka indexing, subscripting, bracket notation)

🎯 Objectives

At the end of this week you will be able to:

  • Describe the four common data types in R, and give examples for them
  • Explain why R vectors are said to be atomic objects
  • Describe and give an example of the implicit coercion rules
  • Describe and give an example of vectorized code
  • Describe and give an example of the recycling rule

📚 Reading

🔬 Lab

You’ll practice creating and manipulating vectors in R, and learning about the concepts described above.