|
Activity Number:
|
488
|
|
Type:
|
Roundtables
|
|
Date/Time:
|
Wednesday, August 5, 2009 : 12:30 PM to 1:50 PM
|
|
Sponsor:
|
Section on Statistics in Defense and National Security
|
| Abstract - #303484 |
|
Title:
|
Statistics versus Operations Research in Defense Analysis
|
|
Author(s):
|
Ron Fricker*+
|
|
Companies:
|
Naval Postgraduate School
|
|
Address:
|
Operations Research Department, Monterey, CA, 93943,
|
|
Keywords:
|
Operations Research ; Statistics ; DoD ; military ; defense ; analysis
|
|
Abstract:
|
In a recent poll of U.S. military analysts in Iraq about which "operations research" (OR) tools they most frequently used, the top six answers were descriptive and inferential statistical methods. Yet the analysts all called themselves operations researchers, not statisticians. Why is OR widely recognized as a discipline within the DoD while Statistics is perceived as a set of tools used by operations researchers? Does it follow from the strong focus of our profession on methodology versus OR's focus on answering a decision maker's question? Or could it be that most military problems transcend the purely statistical? This roundtable will explore these and other questions, including: "How can statisticians become more involved in defense-oriented research?" and "What can we as statisticians do to promote our profession and good statistical practice within the defense community?"
|
