Abstract: 

If you've never heard of the "good, fast, cheap" dilemma, it goes something like this: You can have something good and fast, but it won't be cheap. You can have something good and cheap, but it won't be fast. You can have something fast and cheap, but it won't be good. In short, you can pick two of the three but you can't have all three.

If you've done a data science problem before, I can all but guarantee that you've run into missing data. How do we handle it? Well, we can avoid, ignore, or try to account for missing data. The problem is, none of these strategies are good, fast, *and* cheap.

We'll start by visualizing missing data and identify the three different types of missing data, which will allow us to see how they affect whether we should avoid, ignore, or account for the missing data. We will walk through the advantages and disadvantages of each approach as well as how to visualize and implement each approach. We'll wrap up with practical tips for working with missing data and recommendations for integrating it with your workflow!

Bio: 

Matt currently leads instruction for GA’s Data Science Immersive in Washington, D.C. and most enjoys bridging the gap between theoretical statistics and real-world insights. Matt is a recovering politico, having worked as a data scientist for a political consulting firm through the 2016 election. Prior to his work in politics, he earned his Master’s degree in statistics from The Ohio State University. Matt is passionate about making data science more accessible and putting the revolutionary power of machine learning into the hands of as many people as possible. When he isn’t teaching, he’s thinking about how to be a better teacher, falling asleep to Netflix, and/or cuddling with his pug.