November 2011 Edition

Statistical Outreach & News

NSF GETS UNEXPECTED BOOST FOR FY12; CENSUS, BJS AND ERS SEE DEEP CUTS

A House and Senate panel unveiled Congress’s final FY12 budgets for three of the 12 appropriations bills. NSF received an unexpected increase of 2.5% over it FY11 level while Census was funded at 14% below its FY12 request level; BJS was cut by 25% from FY11 and ERS was cut by 5% (from FY11). NASS also sees an unexpected increase while BEA cut by 1%. Read more.

NSF ATTEMPTS TO EXPAND INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATIONS WITH SAVI

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is attempting to expand international scientific collaborations with SAVI (Science Across Virtual Institutes), a new program that will provide funding for a number of international activities. The program was designed to catalyze international collaborative activities with the expectation that funds from NSF investments and international support can be leveraged to significant advances in science and engineering and for work force development. Read more.

Meetings, Education, & Events

NOVEMBER’S FEATURED LEARNSTAT ONDEMAND OFFERING

This month’s featured LearnSTAT OnDemand offering is Data Monitoring in Practice: Making Your Data Monitoring Committee Effective presented by Janet Wittes and Matt Downs on March 10, 2010. View more information or register.

67TH ANNUAL DEMING CONFERENCE ON APPLIED STATISTICS – Atlantic City, NJ – December 5–9

The 67th Deming Conference will include two parallel half-day tutorial sessions based on recently published books for the first three days. The conference will continue with two two-day short courses. Attendees will receive bound proceedings of the presentations.

FEDERAL COMMITTEE ON STATISTICAL METHODOLOGY (FCSM) RESEARCH CONFERENCE - Washington, DC - January 10–12, 2012

The advance program for the upcoming FCSM Research Conference is set and registration is now open. The conference will consist of a plenary session with keynote speaker Don Dillman from Washington State University, 36 paper sessions, and two technical demonstration sessions. The conference will provide a forum for experts from around the world to discuss and exchange current statistical research and methodological issues. Register and view the advance program on the FCSM website.

SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA CHAPTER WORKSHOP –  San Francisco, CA - JANUARY 28, 2012

The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter is hosting a workshop on January 28, 2012. Roger Hoerl and Ronald Snee will present “Using Statistical Engineering to Solve Large, Unstructured Problems” at the Hotel Biltmore in Santa Clara, California. For more information and to register, visit the chapter’s website.

ASA CONFERENCE ON STATISTICAL PRACTICE – Orlando, Florida – February 16–18, 2012

The program for the inaugural ASA Conference on Statistical Practice is set. Are you a statistical practitioner—data analyst, researcher, or scientist—engaged in the application of statistics to solve real-world problems on a daily basis? The conference will provide an opportunity to learn about the latest statistical methodologies and best practices in statistical design, analysis, programming, and consulting. Explore the program and register for a short course or tutorial today.

5TH ANNUAL SYMPOSIUM ON INNOVATIONS IN DESIGN, ANALYSIS, AND DISSEMINATION: FRONTIERS IN BIOSTATISTICAL METHODS – Kansas City, MO - April 26–27, 2012

Cerner Corporation, the Kansas-Western Missouri Chapter of the ASA, and the department of biostatistics at the University of Kansas Medical Center are pleased to announce their fifth annual symposium. This event will take place at the Cerner Vision Center on Cerner Corporation’s World Headquarters campus. The keynote will be delivered by Richard Simon, chief of the Biometric Research Branch of the National Cancer Institute. A pre-symposium short course, Bayesian Adaptive Methods for Clinical Trials, also will be offered onsite the morning of April 26 by Bradley Carlin, professor and head of biostatistics for the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. Registration for events and additional information will be forthcoming on the ASA website.

4^th ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERNCE ON ESTABLISHMENT SURVEYS (ICESIV) – CALL FOR SOFTWARE DEMONSTRATIONS - Le Centre Sheraton Montreal Hotel Montreal, Quebec, Canada - June 11-14, 2012

Call for Software Demonstrations submission deadline id December 16, 2011. Since 2000, many processing systems have been developed by statistical agencies or software organizations around the globe. Therefore, ICES IV is providing a room for the purpose of demonstrating software used in establishment surveys. These demonstrations should target live processing of data and be able to adapt to the interests of specific audiences. Proposals and questions should be sent to Scot Rumburg or (703) 877-8000, ext.132. Visit our web site.

JSM 2012 – CALL FOR ABSTRACTS - San Diego, California – July 28–August 2, 2012

Help us plan a great JSM! Abstract submission for JSM 2012 will take place December 1 – February 1. Note that JSM registration is required when submitting an abstract to be considered for the 2012 program. To help us provide the best program possible and to reduce program gaps that result from cancellations, presenters and roundtable leaders must commit to the program earlier than required in recent years.  If you have any questions, please send an email to meetings@amstat.org. Check out the 2012 JSM website to learn more and view  upcoming JSM related deadlines.

EVENTS CALENDAR

Statistical events are happening around the country and the globe. View our Upcoming Events Calendar.

Off the Press

AMSTAT NEWS: FIRST ANNUAL ASA CONFERENCE ON STATISTICAL PRACTICE IN FEBRUARY

Over the past nine months, members of the Conference on Statistical Practice organizing and conference committees have envisioned and worked toward a conference focused on the needs of applied and consulting statisticians concerned with urgent problems, issues, and systems for clients and organizations to improve processes, products, and decisions. That vision will become a reality from February 16–18, 2012, as the first ASA Conference on Statistical Practice takes place in Orlando, Florida. Read more. 

FEATURED ARTICLES FROM THE ASA

The following articles have been chosen by each journal's editors as Featured Articles, making them freely available for a limited time. Pass these on to friends and colleagues who might be interested!

JASA Applications and Case Studies

* Population Value Decomposition, a Framework for the Analysis of Image Populations (with discussion) by Ciprian Crainiceanu et al.

* Robust EM Continual Reassessment Method in Oncology Dose Finding by Ying Yuan and Guosheng Yin

JASA Theory and Methods

* Adaptive Confidence Intervals for the Test Error in Classification (with discussion) by Eric B. Laber and Susan A. Murphy

* Rao–Blackwellization for Bayesian Variable Selection and Model Averaging in Linear and Binary Regression: A Novel Data Augmentation Approach by Joyee Ghosh and Merlise A. Clyde

Technometrics

Design of Experiments for Categorical Repeated Measurements in Packet Communication Networks by Ben M. Parker, Steven G. Gilmour, and John A. Schormans

SIGNIFICANCE MAGAZINE ONLINE WEB EXCLUSIVES

Video Games: Zapped by Statistics?

Can statistics destroy a business? Well, some people think it can. Furthermore, some people think statistics can destroy an entire industry. And they are not complaining about complicated econometric models or government surveys. They are complaining about a mean. Read more.

Read more web exclusives from Significance.

THE LATEST ISSUE OF CHANCE IS ONLINE 

Speaking Stats to Justice: Expert Testimony in a Guatemalan Human Rights Trial Based on Statistical Sampling

In October 2010, I testified as an expert witness in a legal case that set a historic precedent for human rights in Guatemala. The Guatemalan Attorney General’s office summoned me to present evidence in the trial of two former Guatemalan National Police agents accused of forcibly disappearing 26-year-old student and union leader Edgar Fernando García. A married man and the father to one young daughter, García disappeared in 1984 after being detained by police on his way to work one morning. Read more.

Member Opportunities

ASA ACCREDITATION PROGRAM CONTINUES TO GROW

The ASA’s accreditation program is up and running, and more than 135 ASA members have been accredited thus far. View a list of accredited statisticians here. Perhaps you are ready to join the growing ranks of ASA-accredited statisticians. To find out how, visit the accreditation website and review the guidelines to be sure of your eligibility.

REVERSE TIME CAPSULE 

Please join us as we look forward to celebrating the ASA’s 175th anniversary by participating in our “reverse” time capsule project. The reverse time capsule will contain forecasts of or comments about the future, specifically regarding the year 2039 (the 200th anniversary of the ASA), as viewed from the present perspective. Thus, it will be the present perspective on the future. Mostly, however, it is simply a fun activity opened at the start of preparations for the 175th anniversary of the ASA. To access the reverse time capsule, go to ASA Members Only and select the Reverse Time Capsule tab at the top of the page. 

AWARDS ANNOUNCEMENTS 

Deadlines and contact information for ASA national awards, special lectureships, and COPSS awards can be found by visiting the following links: ASA awards & scholarships and COPSS awards.  

2012 COUNCIL OF CHAPTERS TRAVELING COURSES 

Courses for the 2012 Council of Chapters Traveling Course program have been finalized, including Applied Mixed Models by Linda Young, Applied Survival Analysis by Susanne May, and Monte Carlo Methods with R by George Casella. The deadline for ASA chapters to apply to host these courses is December 31. For more information about the traveling course program, course descriptions, and the application form, visit the ASA website.

NEW SUBMISSION DATES FOR STUDENT PAPER COMPETITIONS/TRAVEL AWARDS TO ATTEND JOINT STATISTICAL MEETINGS 

More than 12 ASA sections sponsor student paper competition/travel awards to assist students with the cost of travel to attend JSM. Beginning this year, the submission dates have been standardized. The submission deadline for all section competitions is December 15. The ASA has created a portal page, where students can see which sections sponsor student paper competitions and links to the guidelines for each.

AMERICAN STATISTICAL ASSOCIATION’S FELLOWSHIP and RESEARCH PROGRAMS 

The American Statistical Association, with support from the National Science Foundation, has collaborated with several national agencies to provide research fellowships to individuals who have an academically recognized research record and considerable expertise in their area of proposed research. Read more about the fellowship programs.