**Course Title:** Mastering R Programming: Data Analysis, Visualization, and Beyond **Section Title:** Introduction to R and Environment Setup **Topic:** Install R and RStudio, and write a simple script performing basic mathematical operations.(Lab topic) **Objective:** In this lab, you will learn how to install R and RStudio, and write a simple script that performs basic mathematical operations. **Step 1: Installing R** To start with R programming, you need to install R on your computer. Here are the steps: 1. Go to the official R website ([https://www.r-project.org/](https://www.r-project.org/)) and click on the "Download R" link. 2. Select your operating system (Windows, Mac, or Linux) and click on the corresponding link. 3. Follow the installation instructions to install R. **Step 2: Installing RStudio** After installing R, you need to install RStudio, which is a popular integrated development environment (IDE) for R. Here are the steps: 1. Go to the official RStudio website ([https://www.rstudio.com/](https://www.rstudio.com/)) and click on the "Download" link. 2. Select the desktop version of RStudio that matches your operating system (Windows, Mac, or Linux). 3. Follow the installation instructions to install RStudio. **Step 3: Writing a Simple Script in RStudio** After installing R and RStudio, you can start writing scripts in RStudio. Here's a step-by-step guide: 1. Open RStudio on your computer. 2. Create a new R project by clicking on "File" > "New Project" or press Ctrl+Shift+N (Windows) or Command+Shift+N (Mac). 3. Name your project and select a location to save it. 4. Create a new R script by clicking on "File" > "New File" > "R Script" or press Ctrl+N (Windows) or Command+N (Mac). 5. Write the following code in the R script: ```r # Define variables x <- 5 y <- 3 # Perform arithmetic operations sum_xy <- x + y product_xy <- x * y difference_xy <- x - y # Print the results print(paste("The sum of", x, "and", y, "is:", sum_xy)) print(paste("The product of", x, "and", y, "is:", product_xy)) print(paste("The difference of", x, "and", y, "is:", difference_xy)) ``` **Step 4: Running the Script** To run the script, follow these steps: 1. Go to the "Console" panel in RStudio. 2. Click on the "Run" button or press Ctrl+Enter (Windows) or Command+Enter (Mac) to execute the script. **Results** After running the script, you should see the following output in the "Console" panel: ``` [1] "The sum of 5 and 3 is: 8" [1] "The product of 5 and 3 is: 15" [1] "The difference of 5 and 3 is: 2" ``` **Tips and Takeaways** * Always use comments (e.g., `#`) to explain what your code is doing. * Use descriptive variable names to make your code readable. * Practice writing and running your own R scripts to become more comfortable with the syntax. **What to Do Next** In the next topic, we will cover 'Understanding R’s data types: Numeric, character, logical, and factor.' Make sure to review this material thoroughly and practice the exercises before moving on to the next topic. **Leave a Comment or Ask for Help** If you have any questions or need help with this lab, feel free to leave a comment here.