Issue 2026-W05 Highlights

The way LLMs can be a little stubborn when interpreting data visualizations, bringing new meaning to digging for your data and learning along the way, and the latest addition to the futureverse that seems too good to be true, but it is real! Plus an amazing Shiny app tailored made for this very podcast.


Episode Links

• This week's curator: Jonathan Kitt - @jonathankitt.bsky.social (Bluesky)
• LLMs interpret plots well, until expectations interfere
• Students, software, and soil flux
• futurize: Parallelize Common Functions via a "Magic" Touch
• Entire issue available at rweekly.org/2026-W05

Supplement Resources

• {bluffbench} https://simonpcouch.github.io/bluffbench/
• {neonSoilFlux}: An R package for continuous sensor-based estimation of soil CO2 fluxes https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/2041-210x.70216
• Building an R Weekly Highlights Podcast Assistant! https://jokasan.github.io/r-weekly_chatbot/

Supporting the show

• Use the contact page at https://serve.podhome.fm/custompage/r-weekly-highlights/contact to send us your feedback
• R-Weekly Highlights on the Podcastindex.org - You can send a boost into the show directly in the Podcast Index. First, top-up with Alby, and then head over to the R-Weekly Highlights podcast entry on the index.
• A new way to think about value: https://value4value.info
• Get in touch with us on social media
  • Eric Nantz: @rpodcast@podcastindex.social (Mastodon), @rpodcast.bsky.social (BlueSky) and @theRcast (X/Twitter)
  • Mike Thomas: @mike_thomas@fosstodon.org (Mastodon), @mike-thomas.bsky.social (BlueSky), and @mike_ketchbrook (X/Twitter)

Music credits powered by OCRemix

• Sunken Secrets - Super Mario 64 - Fishy - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR02909
• Serenity & Grace - Chrono Cross -timaeus222 - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR04143