STAT1201 Analysis of Scientific Data – Semester 1, 2011
Concise Course Profile
This is a concise version of the course profile for STAT1201. You can access the full course profile through mySI-net or request a printed copy from the Course Coordinator (contact details below).
Course Aims
The aim of STAT1201 is to provide an understanding of the nature of scientific data and the subsequent need for statistical analysis. You will develop your statistical expertise and critical judgment in scientific studies, including an awareness of ethical issues in research and analysis. You will learn about the different types of data and how each can be visualized and summarized, and how you can make conclusions and predictions from the statistical analysis. You will also see that these statistical tools are based on simple mathematical ideas and associated assumptions.
Learning Objectives
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
1. Explain the nature of scientific data and the need for statistical analysis.
2. Identify factors related to the design of a scientific study, including sample size and power, the need for comparative designs, and ethical considerations.
3. Identify and critically evaluate the role of data analysis and statistics in scientific research and publications.
4. Demonstrate a foundational knowledge of statistical methods by being able to carry out simple statistical procedures by hand.
5. Use statistical software appropriately and confidently for exploratory data analysis and to make relevant statistical conclusions.
6. Effectively and appropriately communicate insights from data as evidence within a given context for both a professional and lay audience.
Resource Page
www.maths.uq.edu.au/courses/STAT1201
Textbook
Bulmer, M. (2010) A Portable Introduction to Data Analysis (5th edition)
$29.95 from Co-op Bookshop
Software
The R Project for Statistical Computing
Download for free from www.r-project.org
Course Coordinator and Lecturer
Dr Michael Bulmer 67-754 www.maths.uq.edu.au/~mrb
Consultation times Tuesdays 11:00am – 12:00pm and Wednesdays 8:00am – 9:00am
Other Lecturers
Dr Julian Lamont (Philosophy)
Dr Dustin Marshall (Biological Sciences)
Contact Times
Three lectures per week for working through the textbook, answering questions and discussing content; weekly practicals (starting in Week 2 but not in Weeks 8 or 9) to introduce exploratory data analysis and statistical inference using R; weekly PASS (starting in Week 2) to practice the ideas covered in the lectures by working through activities and exercises with other students and the PASS leaders.
Assessment
Quizzes(10%) / There will be 10 online quizzes during semester, covering the material in each of the practicals as well as general questions related to the course. You can attempt the questions as many times as you like by the due date and time (usually 6:00pm on the Friday of each practical week).
Conference
(10%) / During the course you will look at the use of statistical reasoning in a published scientific study through two assessment tasks. The first task will be to give a 10-minute presentation at the Undergraduate Statistics Conference that summarizes the scientific topic of the paper and gives a critical overview of the statistical analysis used by the authors.
Ethics Review
(10%) / The second task will be to review the ethical issues involved in the study in the form of an essay.
Experimental Project
(20%) / During the course you will also design and carry out your own scientific study using an online population of virtual islanders. At the end of the course you will then analyze your results using the methods covered in the course and present your findings in the form of a scientific paper, using the paper you reviewed earlier as a guide. This project may be completed in groups, submitting a single paper with multiple authors.
Final Exam
(50%) / The 2-hour final examination in June will cover all the lecture material in the course. The questions will be short answer and problem solving. In the exam you will be provided with statistical tables and a sheet of useful formula. You will be permitted to bring a single double-sided A4 sheet of handwritten notes into the exam.
Visit www.uq.edu.au/myadvisor/exam-calculators for a list of calculators approved for use in the exam and procedures for obtaining the official label.
You must get at least 40% of the marks on the final exam to obtain a grade of 4 or higher for the course.
Key Dates
March 11th Quiz 1 due online by 6:00pm
March 11th A4 Project due in Box 001 (Building 67, Level 4) or at lecture by 6:00pm
March 14th Allocations for Undergraduate Statistics Conference posted
March 18th Quiz 2 due online by 6:00pm
March 25th Quiz 3 due online by 6:00pm
March 25th Submit first page of paper you are reviewing in Box 001 (Building 67, Level 4) or at lecture by 6:00pm
April 1st Quiz 4 due online by 6:00pm
April 1st Upload your PowerPoint presentation by 6:00pm
April 2nd Undergraduate Statistics Conference (9:00am – 5:00pm)
April 8th Quiz 5 due online by 6:00pm
April 15th Quiz 6 due online by 6:00pm
April 19th Ethics Review due online by 5:00pm
April 21st Island proposals due (optional)
May 13th Quiz 7 due online by 6:00pm
May 20th Quiz 8 due online by 6:00pm
May 27th Experimental Project paper due online by 5:00pm
May 27th Quiz 9 due online by 6:00pm
June 4th Quiz 10 due online by 6:00pm
Exam Period Final Examination held