Resource Library

The seventh chapter of an online Introduction to Biostatistics course. Two sets of lecture notes are provided (only the first one works). Additionally, links for additional reading and exercises with solutions are provided.

This applet allows the user to adjust a (1st shape) and b (2nd shape) parmaters of the Beta distribution with a slider or manual input. The applet allows the user to fix the x and or y axes. The user immediately sees how this affects the the shape of the graph as well as the variance and the expected value. This page was formerly located at http://www.stat.vt.edu/~sundar/java/applets/BetaDensityApplet.html

This site offers an involved definition of the likelihood ratio test with examples and formulas.

This site focuses on using the LRT to compare two competing models.

This applet allows students to manipulate a histogram and observe changes in the mean and median. The site includes links to exercises and descriptions of measures of center and spread.

In this activity, students work in groups to provide practical interpretations of graphs, considering shape, center, and spread. Each group posts their interpretation for one graph and critiques other groups' interpretations on other graphs. Students examine key aspects (shape, spread, location, etc) of histograms and stem plots to develop the ability to interpret graphics. This activity gets the students up and out of their seats and working together. It is a good activity for early in a term. The Gallery Walk idea can be adapted for different sized classes but this activity has been designed for classes up to 65 students.

This resource defines and explains variance and standard deviation.

This website helps students learn concepts underlying statistical inference, through the simulation software, Sampling SIM. This software lets students explore sampling distributions by building population distributions, taking random samples, and exploring the behavior of sampling distributions and confidence intervals. The site includes instructional modules and assessment instruments. Key words: measures of center, sampling, sampling distribution, confidence interval, p-values, power

Statistics is a poem by Canadian physician Neil Harding McAlister (1952 - ). The poem contains material that can help with class discussions about sample surveys, medical experiments, and significance testing.

This applet simulates and plots the sampling distribution of various statistics (i.e. mean, standard deviation, variance). The applet allows the user to specify the population distribution, sample size, and statistic. An animated sample from the population is shown and the statistic is plotted. This can be repeated to produce the sampling distribution of the statistic. After the sampling distribution is plotted it can be compared to a normal distribution by overlaying a normal curve. These features make it useful for introducing students in a first course to the idea of a sampling distribution. The site also includes instructions and exercises. Also available at: http://www.stat.ucla.edu/~dinov/courses_students.dir/Applets.dir/SamplingDistributionApplet.html