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This group activity illustrates the concepts of size and power of a test through simulation. Students simulate binomial data by repeatedly rolling a ten-sided die, and they use their simulated data to estimate the size of a binomial test. They carry out further simulations to estimate the power of the test. After pooling their data with that of other groups, they construct a power curve. A theoretical power curve is also constructed, and the students discuss why there are differences between the expected and estimated curves. Key words: Power, size, hypothesis testing, binomial distribution

This activity is an advanced version of the "Keep your eyes on the ball" activity by Bereska, et al. (1999). Students should gain experience with differentiating between independent and dependent variables, using linear regression to describe the relationship between these variables, and drawing inference about the parameters of the population regression line. Each group of students collects data on the rebound heights of a ball dropped multiple times from each of several different heights. By plotting the data, students quickly recognize the linear relationship. After obtaining the least squares estimate of the population regression line, students can set confidence intervals or test hypotheses on the parameters. Predictions of rebound length can be made for new values of the drop height as well. Data from different groups can be used to test for equality of the intercepts and slopes. By focusing on a particular drop height and multiple types of balls, one can also introduce the concept of analysis of variance. Key words: Linear regression, independent variable, dependent variables, analysis of variance

This handout lists the most commonly used effect sizes, adjustments, and rules of thumb concerning sample size calculation. 

Students explore the definition and interpretations of the probability of an event by investigating the long run proportion of times a sum of 8 is obtained when two balanced dice are rolled repeatedly. Making use of hand calculations, computer simulations, and descriptive techniques, students encounter the laws of large numbers in a familiar setting. By working through the exercises, students will gain a deeper understanding of the qualitative and quantitative relationships between theoretical probability and long run relative frequency. Particularly, students investigate the proximity of the relative frequency of an event to its probability and conclude, from data, the order on which the dispersion of the relative frequency diminishes. Key words: probability, law of large numbers, simulation, estimation

Includes project file for Minitab and coding for a dice rolling simulation.

Poses the following problem: Suppose there was one of six prizes inside your favorite box of cereal. Perhaps it's a pen, a plastic movie character, or a picture card. How many boxes of cereal would you expect to have to buy, to get all six prizes?

R is a language and environment for statistical computing and graphics. It is a GNU project which is similar to the S language and environment which was developed at Bell Laboratories (formerly AT&T, now Lucent Technologies) by John Chambers and colleagues. R can be considered as a different implementation of S. There are some important differences, but much code written for S runs unaltered under R.

R provides a wide variety of statistical (linear and nonlinear modelling, classical statistical tests, time-series analysis, classification, clustering, …) and graphical techniques, and is highly extensible. The S language is often the vehicle of choice for research in statistical methodology, and R provides an Open Source route to participation in that activity.

G*Power is a tool to compute statistical power analyses for many different t tests, F tests, χ2 tests, ztests and some exact tests. G*Power can also be used to compute effect sizes and to display graphically the results of power analyses.

Tetrad is a program which creates, simulates data from, estimates, tests, predicts with, and searches for causal and statistical models. The aim of the program is to provide sophisticated methods in a friendly interface requiring very little statistical sophistication of the user and no programming knowledge. It is not intended to replace flexible statistical programming systems such as Matlab, Splus or R. Tetrad is freeware that performs many of the functions in commercial programs such as Netica, Hugin, LISREL, EQS and other programs, and many discovery functions these commercial programs do not perform.

As our economy, society, and daily life become increasingly dependent on data, work across nearly all fields is becoming more data driven, affecting both the jobs that are available and the skills that are required. At the request of the National Science Foundation, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine were asked to set forth a vision for the emerging discipline of data science at the undergraduate level. The study committee considered the core principles and skills undergraduates should learn and discussed the pedagogical issues that must be addressed to build effective data science education programs. Data Science for Undergraduates: Opportunities and Options underscores the importance of preparing undergraduates for a data-enabled world and recommends that academic institutions and other stakeholders take steps to meet the evolving data science needs of students. 

Watch the report release webinar here:  https://vimeo.com/269033724  

Gapminder seeks to educate all on the importance of "factfulness" and of knowing and contextualizing the statistics that describe the state of our world.  Learn facts from across the globe such as average income, life expectancy, energy use, education levels, and much more.

Download Gapminder’s slides, tools, posters, handouts, lesson plans, and presentations at this webpage.