BTRY 6010/ILRST 6100: Statistical Methods I
Fall 2009

Biological Statistics and Computational Biology
Cornell University

Statistics is the science and art of obtaining, analyzing and interpreting data and provides a set of essential tools that assist researchers in almost all disciplines. This course will prepare students to solve basic problems encountered in research and to make sound data-based decisions. All methodologies discussed in this course will be approached in a manner rigorous enough to permit students to apply them at a level sufficient for publication in scientific journals. Statistical computing will be carried out using JMP 7.0, a SAS product.

Instructor:Professor Rob Strawderman
1172 Comstock Hall
rls54@cornell.edu
Office hours: TBA

Class:MWF 12:20PM - 01:10PM, IVS 305

Textbook:A First Course in Statistical Methods (FCSM; 2004), Ott & Longnecker
ISBN-10: 0534408060, ISBN-13: 9780534408060
Data sets for the text book are available online.

Prerequisite: Graduate standing or permission of instructor. If you are interested in auditing this course, please contact Bea Johnson(bj11@cornell.edu) before you enroll.

TAs: Head TA: Haim Bar <hyb2@cornell.edu>, office hours: TBA
Other TA's: TBA

Course format: 3 lectures, 1 lab per week. All lectures will use powerpoint; slides will be available for download prior to class. All labs and homework assignments will be distributed electronically. Students are expected to attend all lectures and labs.

Labs: 401 M 07:30PM - 08:45PM, MNL B30A
402 T 08:40AM - 09:55AM, MNL B30A
403 T 02:55PM - 04:10PM, MNL B30A
404 M 03:00PM - 04:15PM, MNL B30A

Software: JMP 7

Grading:TBA. In all likelihood, course grades will be based on weekly homework, 2 evening prelims, and a final. More details to follow as this is worked out.

Important dates: Course Add/Drop Begins: Wednesday, August 26
Instruction Begins: Thursday, August 27
First prelim: 7:30 PM, Thursday, October 8 (room[s] TBA)
Fall Break Begins:, 1:10 PM, Saturday, October 10
Instruction Resumes: 7:30 AM, Wednesday October 14
Second prelim: 7:30 PM, Tuesday, November 10 (room[s] TBA)
Thanksgiving Recess Begins: 1:10 PM, Wednesday, November 25
Instruction Resumes: 7:30 AM, Monday, November 30
Last Day of Class: Friday, December 4
Last Day of Classes: Saturday, December 5
Final exam: Wednesday, Dec 16, 7:00 - 9:30 pm

Outline of topics covered: (approximate & subject to change)

Topic Week(s)    O&L: Stat Meth
Administration & Intro 1 1.1-1.6, 2.1-2.5
Descriptive Statistics 2 3.1-3.7
Probability 3 & 4 4.1-4.10
Random Sampling,
Sampling Distributions,
Central Limit Theorem		54.12-4.13
One sample inference for location parameters 5 & 6 5.1-5.7
Two sample inference for location parameters 76.1-6.6
Inference about variances87.1-7.3
Inference for several means (ANOVA)8 & 9 7.4, 8.1-8.4, 8.6
Contrasts and Multiple Comparisons9 9.1-9.5
Simple linear regression & Correlation10 & 1111.1-11.5, 11.7
Multiple linear regression11 & 1212.1-12.5
Categorical Data12 & 1310.1-10.6, 10.8
Logistic & Poisson Regression (if time) 13 - 1512.8

General Homework Policies:

  • Homework will be due in class on the specified due date (always on a Friday).

  • Each student will be allowed to hand in one late homework assignment, provided permission is first obtained from Haim Bar (hyb2). All other late homework will receive a grade of zero.

  • Mistakes may occasionally occur when grading homework or exams. If you think you have received an unfair grade, we would be happy to regrade your assignment. However, we would like to distinguish two cases. If a simple error has been made (e.g., points were added incorrectly), please just see your TA to have it corrected and properly recorded. On the other hand, if you clearly made a mistake and you wish to question the amount of credit that you received for an answer, we reserve the right to regrade the entire paper. If we do so, the new grade received will be the final homework grade regardless of the outcome. To request such a correction, please write a short explanation of why you believe the paper was unfairly graded, staple this to your paper, and give the homework to your TA. All regrading requests must be made within one week of receiving the graded assignment; requests received after this date will not be honored.

  • We encourage you to form study groups to discuss the ideas from this course. You will learn a lot more by being able to talk things over with other people. However, all work that you hand in must be your own. Meaning: while you may freely discuss homework problems with your classmates, all homework that you hand in must be completely your own work.

    Academic Integrity:

    Each student in this course is expected to abide by the Cornell University Code of Academic Integrity. Students must in no way misrepresent their work, fraudulently or unfairly advance their academic status, or be a party to another student's failure to maintain academic integrity. A full statement of this code may be found at: http://cuinfo.cornell.edu/Academic/AIC.html.

    Accommodations for Students with Disabilities:

    In compliance with the Cornell University policy and equal access laws, Professor Strawderman is available to discuss appropriate academic accommodations that may be required for student with disabilities. Except for unusual circumstances, requests for academic accommodations must be made during the first three weeks of the semester so that appropriate arrangements can be made. Students are encouraged to register with Student Disability Services to verify their eligibility for appropriate accommodations.