Statistics 101

Additional registration required. This 4-hour Statistical Literacy class will cover a number of concepts about data that librarians will find invaluable. We will start with understanding what data is and why and how we collect it. In these days of buzz words relating to “big data”, we will talk about the basics of what data is, what it is meant to be, big or small. We will cover terms like: population, sample, parameter, statistics, exploratory studies, confirmatory studies, inference, testing and p-values. We will make a distinction between univariate, bivariate and multivariate methods. At the end of the class the attendees should have a good basic understanding of the types of data and how each type needs to be analyzed differently. The hope is that, the attendees will not be intimidated by jargon but will be able to understand some basic concepts when confronted with statistical terms. We will collect some data in class and analyze it so that the attendees get hands-on experience about the process. The list of topics for this session are given below: Statistics: The Science of Data Types of Data. Why we collect data? Big data: What, when and how? Population versus Sample Experiments, observational studies Exploratory studies versus confirmatory studies The Idea of inference Distinction: Uni-variate, Bi-variate, Multi-variate, multiple (with example data sets) Graphical Summary Numerical summary From center to one sample tests The idea of testing and p-values Controversy with p-values Summary and Discussio