SDS 501: Statistical Programming with Friends — with Jared Lander

R vs Python

The debate between R and Python often sparks passionate discussions among data scientists. Jared Lander and Jon Krohn explore this topic, highlighting that both languages have largely converged in capabilities. Jared notes that the choice often boils down to personal preference and the way one thinks about programming, with Python appealing to those with a computer engineering mindset and R to those with a mathematical inclination 1.

The languages at this point are 95% converged. There's very little one language can do that the other one can't.

--- Jared Lander

Jon appreciates Jared's insights, acknowledging the nuanced perspective he brings to the ongoing debate 2.

   

Deployment

Deploying R in production environments presents unique challenges and opportunities. Jared shares his experience with Lander Analytics, where R is used extensively in production, from creating Shiny apps to running R as a service job 3. He emphasizes that R is a robust language capable of handling full production systems, contrary to the belief that it is only suitable for prototyping.

We don't just prototype in R, we deploy in R.

--- Jared Lander

Jon and Jared discuss the versatility of R in various industries, from pharmaceuticals to sports analytics, showcasing its adaptability and power in real-world applications 4.