Abstract #300638

The views expressed here are those of the individual authors
and not necessarily those of the ASA or its board, officers, or staff.

Back to main JSM 2002 Program page
JSM 2002 Abstract #300638
Activity Number: 365
Type: Invited
Date/Time: Wednesday, August 14, 2002 : 4:00 PM to 5:50 PM
Sponsor: ASA
Abstract - #300638
Title: Variability is Not Always a Nuisance Parameter
Author(s): Raymond Carroll*+
Affiliation(s): Texas A&M University
Address: 447 Blocker Building, College Station, Texas, 77843-3143, USA
Keywords:
Abstract:

In classical problems, e.g., comparing two populations, fitting a regression surface, etc., variability is a nuisance parameter. The term "nuisance parameter" is meant here in both the technical and the practical sense. In my career, however, I have encountered many problems where understanding the structure of variability is just as central as understanding the mean structure. I will review a few of these problems, among which are the following list: a.) determining the validity of an immunoassay; b.) managing the Atlantic menhaden fishery; c.) understanding whether food frequency questionnaires have ability to detect meaningful fat intake/breast cancer relationships; and d.) radiation dose-response in the presence of dose uncertainty. In these and other problems, treating variance structure as a nuisance. instead of a central part of the modeling effort, not only leads to inefficient estimation of means, but also to misleading conclusions.

  • The address information is for the authors that have a + after their name.
  • Authors who are presenting talks have a * after their name.

Back to the full JSM 2002 program

JSM 2002

For information, contact meetings@amstat.org or phone (703) 684-1221.

If you have questions about the Continuing Education program, please contact the Education Department.

Revised March 2002