The Split-Apply-Combine Strategy for Data Analysis

Abstract

Many data analysis problems involve the application of a split-apply-combine strategy, where you break up a big problem into manageable pieces, operate on each piece independently and then put all the pieces back together. This insight gives rise to a new R package that allows you to smoothly apply this strategy, without having to worry about the type of structure in which your data is stored. The paper includes two case studies showing how these insights make it easier to work with batting records for veteran baseball players and a large 3d array of spatio-temporal ozone measurements.