ASA Member News Archive
ASA Member News February 2008
Welcome to the February edition of ASA Member News, the ASA's monthly e-newsletter.
STATbit
Did you know that in the past year 422 members have joined as a result of the ASA Member Get a Member Campaign? We know our current members are the best possible source for new members who can benefit from all the ASA has to offer. Every time you recruit a member, you strengthen the ASA. For each member you recruit, you will receive a $10 gift certificate good for any ASA product or service.
In Amstat News
In this month’s President’s Corner, Peter A. (Tony) Lachenbruch talks about anniversaries in statistics, from William Sealy Gosset’s paper, “The Probable Error of a Mean,” published in Biometrika in 1908, to today.
Upcoming Deadlines
CALL FOR ASA FELLOW NOMINATIONS – Deadline: March 3, 2008
Becoming an ASA Fellow is one of the highest honors bestowed by our organization. On behalf of the ASA, members of the Committee on Fellows strongly encourage the nomination of deserving members for the ASA Fellow Award. They also encourage ASA chapters, sections, committees to search for and nominate deserving members from their respective constituencies.
SPAIG AWARD NOMINATIONS – Deadline: March 5, 2008
The Statistical Partnerships among Academe, Industry, and Government (SPAIG) committee of the American Statistical Association would like to solicit applications or nominations for the 2008 SPAIG Award. Each year, SPAIG recognizes effective partnerships with a SPAIG Award. It is presented at the annual Joint Statistical Meetings. If you have an ongoing partnership, please consider applying for the award. If you have questions about the award or the process, feel free to contact Rahul Parsa or Morteza Marzjarani.
GERTRUDE M. COX SCHOLARSHIP – Deadline: March 14, 2008
The Gertrude Cox Scholarship is awarded each year to encourage women to enter statistically oriented professions.
NOMINATIONS FOR EXCELLENCE IN STATISTICAL REPORTING AWARD – Deadline: March 14, 2008
This award is given to encourage and recognize members of the communications media who have best displayed an informed interest in the science of statistics and its role in public life. The award can be given for a single statistical presentation or for sustained worthy contributions, as would clearly be a credit to the statistical profession.
FOUNDERS AWARD NOMINATIONS CALL – Deadline: March 15, 2008
In 1988, the ASA Board of Directors voted to establish the ASA Founders Award to recognize members who have rendered distinguished service to the association. Individuals selected will have served the association for an extended period of time, usually in a variety of leadership roles such as, but not limited to, section, chapter, committee, editorial, or officer capacities wherein effective service or leadership was provided within the ASA or through ASA outreach to other organizations.
NOMINATIONS FOR W. J. YOUDEN AWARD – Deadline: March 15, 2008
Nominations are being accepted for the 2008 W. J. Youden Award in Interlaboratory Testing, sponsored by the American Statistical Association. This award was established in 1985 to recognize publications that make outstanding contributions to the design and/or analysis of interlaboratory tests or describe ingenious approaches to the planning and evaluation of data from such tests. The award recipient(s) will receive a certificate and share of a $1,000 prize.
NOMINATIONS FOR MARY G. AND JOSEPH NATRELLA SCHOLARSHIP – Deadline: March 17, 2008
Nominations are being accepted for the 2008 Mary G. and Joseph Natrella Scholarship, sponsored by the ASA Quality and Productivity Section. The scholarship is open to students pursuing a master’s or doctoral degree full time in an accredited college or university. The student must have a demonstrated interest in quality applications as evidenced by course work, research topic, or prior work experience. The scholarship provides a $2,500 grant and a travel stipend to attend the Quality and Productivity Research Conference, at which the student will give a presentation of his/her research work.
SCHOLARSHIP NOMINATIONS – Deadline: April 1, 2008
Wilks Memorial Medal - The 2008 Samuel S. Wilks Memorial Medal Committee invites members to submit nominations for this award, to be presented at the 2008 annual meetings in August. The award consists of a medal, citation, and honorarium.
Bryant Scholarship - The Edward C. Bryant Scholarship for Outstanding Graduate Student in Survey Statistics is awarded each August at the Joint Statistical Meetings. The winner receives a certificate and $1,500 prize.
Outstanding Statistical Applicant Award - The Award of Outstanding Statistical Application was established in 1986 to recognize a paper that is an outstanding application of statistics in any substantive field. The award will be presented at the Joint Statistical Meetings in August.
Waller Education Award - The Section on Statistical Education is proud to administer the seventh Waller Education Award in 2008.
NOMINATIONS SOUGHT FOR 2009 ELECTION – Deadline: April 15, 2008
The ASA needs your help. Although the 2008 elections are just approaching, we already need to begin preparing for the 2009 elections. Nominations are being sought for ASA President-Elect and Vice President. As a member of the ASA, you recognize the importance of leadership in our diverse, complex, multidisciplinary industry. Think about your colleagues and associates who are fellow members of the ASA. The president-elect will be nominated from the government sector; the vice president is to be nominated from academia.
Events Outlook
NEW WEB-BASED TRAINING SERIES FROM THE BIOPHARMACEUTICAL SECTION: STATISTICAL EVALUATION OF SURROGATE ENDPOINTS IN CLINICAL TRIALS
A new, three-part webinar series presented by Geert Molenberghs will provide an overview of surrogate endpoint developments, with illustrations predominantly from the fields of ophthalmology, oncology, and mental health. Module 1, Setting the Scene, will be presented on February 21. Module 2, The Meta-analytic Framework, will be presented on March 27. Module 3, Towards Unification, will be presented April 24.
NEW LEARNSTAT COURSE: ANALYSIS OF CENSORED DATA – Alexandria, Virginia – April 18, 2008
A new LearnSTAT course for the spring, Analysis of Censored Data by Danyu Lin, will review key developments of statistical theory and methods for analyzing censored event time data in the last three decades.
University of Pennsylvania Annual Conference on Statistical Issues in Clinical Trials: From Bench to Bedside to Community – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – April 18, 2008
The University of Pennsylvania will host its inaugural Annual Conference on Statistical Issues in Clinical Trials: From Bench to Bedside to Community. The topic of the 2008 conference is "Early, Translational, and Proof-of-Concept Studies: The 'Go/No Go' Decisions." The conference is organized by Jonas Ellenberg, Rosemarie Mick, and Susan Ellenberg. It has been funded by NIH/NCI Grant R13-CA132565 and is cosponsored by the American Statistical Association. The conference will bring together leading scientists who will make presentations and lead open discussions about state-of-the-art and developing methods. The conference will conclude with a panel discussion to synthesize and challenge earlier presentations, as well as to propose future directions.
2008 SIAM INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON DATA MINING – Atlanta, Georgia – April 24–26, 2008
The 2008 SIAM International Conference on Data Mining (SDM08) will be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Atlanta, Georgia, from April 24–26, 2008. This conference is held in cooperation with the ASA and brings together data mining, statistical, and mathematical researchers from academic, government, and industrial institutions. SDM08 will provide a venue for researchers to present their work on data mining in a peer-reviewed forum. It also provides an ideal setting for graduate students and others new to the field to learn about cutting-edge research by hearing outstanding invited speakers and attending tutorials (included with conference registration). A set of focused workshops is also held on the last day of the conference.
2008 ASA CONFERENCE ON RADIATION AND HEALTH – Vail, Colorado - June 15–18, 2008
The 2008 American Statistical Association's Conference on Radiation and Health continues a decades-long tradition of bringing together scientists working in the biophysical, biological, biostatistical, and public health aspects of radiation epidemiology in a beautiful and relaxed atmosphere. All speakers are internationally recognized experts in their fields of specialization. The meeting will have a special focus on new directions in radiation research. These include recent discoveries in radiobiology, radiation dosimetry, and radiation epidemiology, as well as new statistical approaches to existing data. In addition, the program will highlight the epidemiological and scientific evidence of radiation effects on human health occurring at low dose levels. More information about the conference, including the program, procedures for submitting poster session abstracts, and application deadlines for new investigator awards will be posted soon on the ASA Meetings web site. If you have any questions, please direct them to the Meetings Department.
THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON BIOPHARMACEUTICAL STATISTICS – Shanghai, China – June 30–July 2, 2008
The 2008 symposium, cosponsored by the American Statistical Association, will provide an international forum for statistical professionals to share information and improve and promote the harmonization of statistical practice in the industry at the international front. The symposium will cover a range of topics in research; development; and regulations of drugs, biologics, medical devices, and biotechnologies. There will be keynote speeches and invited presentations from prominent statisticians.
MEETING WITHIN A MEETING (MWM): ASA WORKSHOP FOR K–12 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE TEACHERS – Denver, Colorado – August 4–5, 2008
MWM will occur in conjunction with JSM this summer in Denver for K–12 math and science teachers to enhance their understanding and teaching of statistics within the math/science curriculum. Do you know any K–12 teachers who might be interested in attending MWM?
EVENTS CALENDAR
Statistical events are happening around the country and the globe. View our Upcoming Events Calendar.
@amstat.org
MATH AWARENESS MONTH VIDEO CONTEST
The American Statistical Association, the American Mathematical Society, the Mathematical Association of America, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics announce that the theme for Mathematics Awareness Month 2008 is Math and Voting. What does “Math and Voting” mean to you? Unleash your creativity and show millions. Visit the Math Awareness Month web site and then create a video—to be hosted on YouTube—using music, humor, and other creative elements to express your feelings about the connection between mathematics and voting. The winner will be awarded with $500 and recognition on the website and in the July issue of Amstat News.
Special Opportunities
2008 ASA ELECTION NEWS
The ASA annual election of officers opens March 17, 2008. The ASA is going paperless with this year’s election, so please be sure to check your email for the electronic ballot. For more information, contact Carole Sutton.
NOMINATIONS SOUGHT FOR EDITOR OF THE ASA STATISTICS EDUCATION WEB (STEW)
The American Statistical Association invites nominations for the editor of Statistics Education Web, or STEW, an online bank of peer-reviewed lesson plans for K–12 teachers of math and science. The editor—who will serve from 2009 through 2011, with orientation beginning in 2008—will review lesson plans that showcase the use of statistical methods and ideas in science and mathematics.
2008 POSTER AND PROJECT COMPETITIONS: NEW WEBINAR ON WORKING WITH K-12 STUDENTS TO CREATE A STATISTICS POSTER
Introduce students to statistics through the annual poster and project competitions. For teachers and students submitting entries to the poster competition, the ASA has posted the webinar: Working with K-12 Students to Create a Statistics Poster, presented by John Gabrosek and Neal Rogness of Grand Valley State University. This instructional webinar gives tips on selecting a topic, collecting data, graphically displaying the data, communicating the message, and avoiding common pitfalls. The deadline for both competitions is April 1, 2008.
2008 TRAVELING SHORT COURSES
The ASA Council of Chapters Traveling Short Course Committee is pleased to announce its 2008 course offerings. The traveling short courses are provided by the ASA to bring low-cost, local courses to chapters that provide workshops for members and help develop programs and outreach.
JSM 2008 LOCAL AREA COMMITTEE
Matt Pocernich, president of the ASA Colorado-Wyoming Chapter, is looking for members interested in participating in Local Area Committee activities that support the Joint Statistical Meetings in Denver, August 3–7, 2008.
Feedback, comments, or suggestions are welcome please email asamail@amstat.org with your ideas.