25 years ago Ross Ihaka and Robert Gentleman created a programme at the University of Auckland that would change my life forever: R.

To celebrate R’s 25th anniversary I’m challenging all R users to give just $1 for every hour you’ve used R in the last year or, if you’re feeling more generous, for every hour you’ve ever enjoyed using it.

R first came into my life as an undergraduate at the University of Auckland. I had a background in programming, and I still vividly remember the feeling of "wow! this language is weird!" when I encountered it in my first stats class. That weirdness lead me to dig deeper into how R worked, and has turned into a 15 year love affair with the language.

Today, I probably spend 40 hours a week thinking in and about R. I love the incredible energy and enthusiasm in the R community, as well as how friendly it is to newcomers.

Donations will be used to support the Ihaka Lecture Series hosted at the birthplace of R, the University of Auckland, and available for everyone online. Bringing together great speakers from New Zealand and around the world, they share their knowledge and latest developments of our favourite programme. Your gift will also provide financial assistance to talented statistics students in need, perhaps even for the next Ross Ihaka.

This is youR opportunity to support continued investment in R education and continue Ross’s legacy.

Need another reason to give?

• Everyone who donates will receive a special edition Ihaka Lecture Series hexagonal sticker – only available here!

• The first 10 people to donate $250 will receive a 2018 Ihaka Lecture Series T-shirt - THESE ARE NOW ALL GONE!

• If you donate $1,000 I’ll give you a shoutout on twitter

• The first person to donate $10,000 will receive a jandal signed by Ross Ihaka.

• A gift of $35,000 will make you the primary sponsor of the 2019 lecture series

• Feeling very generous? $1,000,000 will get you on day of brainstorming with me, anywhere in the world

Want to make a tax efficient gift from the US? Click here:

https://www.nycharities.org/give/donate.aspx?cc=3649