Ifelse vectorized function in R Programming - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Using the ifelse Vectorized Function in R

📖 Scenario: You are working with a list of students' scores. You want to quickly label each score as "Pass" or "Fail" based on a passing mark.

🎯 Goal: Create a vector of scores, set a passing threshold, use the ifelse function to label each score as "Pass" or "Fail", and print the result.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create a numeric vector called scores with the values 45, 67, 89, 34, 56

Create a numeric variable called pass_mark and set it to 50

Use the ifelse function with scores and pass_mark to create a character vector called results labeling scores as "Pass" or "Fail"

Print the results vector

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Teachers and trainers often need to quickly classify student scores to identify who passed or failed.

💼 Career

Data analysts and statisticians use vectorized functions like <code>ifelse</code> in R to efficiently process and categorize data.

1

Create the scores vector

Create a numeric vector called scores with these exact values: 45, 67, 89, 34, 56

R Programming

# Create the scores vector
# Your code here

Hint

Use the c() function to combine numbers into a vector.

2

Set the passing mark

Create a numeric variable called pass_mark and set it to 50

R Programming

scores <- c(45, 67, 89, 34, 56)
# Create the pass_mark variable
# Your code here

Hint

Assign the number 50 to the variable pass_mark using the assignment operator <-.

3

Use ifelse to label pass or fail

Use the ifelse function with scores and pass_mark to create a character vector called results that contains "Pass" if the score is greater than or equal to pass_mark, otherwise "Fail"

R Programming

scores <- c(45, 67, 89, 34, 56)
pass_mark <- 50
# Use ifelse to create results vector
# Your code here

Hint

The ifelse function takes three arguments: a condition, a value if true, and a value if false.

4

Print the results vector

Print the results vector using the print() function

R Programming

scores = pass_mark, "Pass", "Fail")
# Print the results vector
# Your code here

Hint

Use print(results) to show the vector on the screen.

Practice

1. What does the ifelse function in R do?

easy

A. It checks a condition for each element and returns values accordingly.

B. It creates a loop to iterate over elements.

C. It sorts a vector in ascending order.

D. It combines two vectors into one.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of ifelse

   The ifelse function tests a condition for each element in a vector.

2. Step 2: Identify the output behavior

   It returns a new vector with values chosen from the 'yes' or 'no' options based on the condition.

3. Final Answer:

   It checks a condition for each element and returns values accordingly. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   ifelse = condition-based selection [OK]

Hint: Think: condition check for each item returns chosen values [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing ifelse with loops
• Thinking it sorts or merges vectors
• Assuming it modifies original vector in place

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax for using ifelse in R?

easy

A. ifelse(condition, yes, no)

B. ifelse(yes, no, condition)

C. ifelse(condition; yes; no)

D. ifelse(condition -> yes, no)

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall the function signature

   The ifelse function takes three arguments: a condition, a value if true, and a value if false.

2. Step 2: Match the correct order and separators

   The correct syntax uses commas to separate arguments: ifelse(condition, yes, no).

3. Final Answer:

   ifelse(condition, yes, no) -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Syntax = ifelse(condition, yes, no) [OK]

Hint: Remember: condition first, then yes, then no, separated by commas [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Swapping order of arguments
• Using semicolons instead of commas
• Using arrows or other symbols incorrectly

3. What is the output of the following R code?

nums <- c(5, 10, 15, 20)
result <- ifelse(nums > 10, "big", "small")
print(result)

medium

A. ["big", "big", "small", "small"]

B. ["small", "small", "big", "big"]

C. [5, 10, 15, 20]

D. [TRUE, TRUE, FALSE, FALSE]

Solution

1. Step 1: Evaluate the condition for each element

   Check if each number in nums is greater than 10: 5 > 10 is FALSE, 10 > 10 is FALSE, 15 > 10 is TRUE, 20 > 10 is TRUE.

2. Step 2: Assign values based on condition

   For FALSE, assign "small"; for TRUE, assign "big". So the result vector is ["small", "small", "big", "big"].

3. Final Answer:

   ["small", "small", "big", "big"] -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Condition >10 gives small or big [OK]

Hint: Check condition element-wise, assign yes/no values [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing > with >=
• Returning original numbers instead of labels
• Mixing up true and false outputs

4. Identify the error in this R code snippet:

values <- c(1, 2, 3, 4)
result <- ifelse(values > 2, "high" "low")
print(result)

medium

A. Incorrect vector assignment syntax.

B. Using > operator instead of >=.

C. Using print() instead of cat() to display output.

D. Missing comma between 'high' and 'low' in ifelse arguments.

Solution

1. Step 1: Check the ifelse argument syntax

   The ifelse function requires three arguments separated by commas: condition, yes, no.

2. Step 2: Identify missing comma

   In the code, "high" and "low" are not separated by a comma, causing a syntax error.

3. Final Answer:

   Missing comma between 'high' and 'low' in ifelse arguments. -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Arguments must be comma-separated [OK]

Hint: Check commas between all ifelse arguments [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Omitting commas between arguments
• Confusing operators > and >=
• Thinking print() causes error here

5. You have a numeric vector temps <- c(-5, 0, 10, 20, 30). Use ifelse to create a new vector labels that labels temperatures below 0 as "freezing", between 0 and 20 (inclusive) as "cold", and above 20 as "warm". Which code correctly does this?

hard

A. labels <- ifelse(temps <= 0, "freezing", ifelse(temps < 20, "cold", "warm"))

B. labels <- ifelse(temps < 0, "freezing", ifelse(temps < 20, "cold", "warm"))

C. labels <- ifelse(temps < 0, "freezing", ifelse(temps <= 20, "cold", "warm"))

D. labels <- ifelse(temps < 0, "freezing", ifelse(temps >= 20, "warm", "cold"))

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the labeling rules

   Label "freezing" if temperature is below 0, "cold" if between 0 and 20 inclusive, and "warm" if above 20.

2. Step 2: Check nested ifelse conditions

   The first ifelse checks temps < 0 for "freezing". The second nested ifelse checks if temps <= 20 for "cold", else "warm".

3. Final Answer:

   labels <- ifelse(temps < 0, "freezing", ifelse(temps <= 20, "cold", "warm")) -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Nested ifelse with correct bounds [OK]

Hint: Use nested ifelse for multiple conditions with correct bounds [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using < instead of <= for 20 boundary
• Swapping warm and cold labels
• Not nesting ifelse properly