Topic 4B: Why is statistics important for my studies?

Introduction

🏡 In today’s computer lab, you will have the opportunity to watch one or more videos where experts from your chosen discipline, or field of study, discuss the relevance of statistics in their (and your) context. They will discuss questions including:

  • Tell us about your research and work
  • How did you feel about stats initially (think back to 1st-year stats at uni)?
  • How do research papers support your current work?
  • How does your knowledge of statistics enable you to read and interpret these papers?

You may be surprised to discover that many of the experts we talked to felt apprehensive about studying statistics at first, which may be similar to how you are feeling now. Through watching the videos, you will catch a glimpse of what the journey from here could look like.

Make sure to save your answers from this Computer Lab, as some of the questions from this lab will appear in Assignment 1.

Note: today, there are some additional, optional readings available continuing the topic of Designing a Study. In these readings, the concept of External validity is discussed in further depth, along with a discussion of various sampling methods. This optional material can be found here: STM1001 Topic 4B (Science and Health). Extension material.

1 Video: Why is statistics important for my studies?

💻 To begin today’s computer lab, go to the page on the LMS called “Videos for Computer Lab 4B (Sci/Health Stream)”. This page can be found just below the link you clicked to access this question sheet.

Once you have accessed the Videos page, look through the list of titles, and select the one for your chosen course / major. If your course / major is not specifically listed, select the one that is most closely related, or the one that interests you the most.

Once you have selected a video, watch the video before proceeding to the next question. You may choose to watch more than one video.

2 Reflection: Why is statistics important for my studies?

đź’» After watching one or more videos, write down your answers to the following questions.

  • Which video(s) did you watch?
  • Why did you choose your course / major? What are your future aspirations with this qualification (i.e. what would you potentially like to do in the future)?
  • Reflecting on the video(s) you watched, how do you think statistics will support your studies and future career?

Remember to save your answers from this question so you can include them in your Assignment 1 submission later in the Semester / Term.

3 Your input: Did you find this exercise useful?

đź’» We hope you found the videos and the reflection exercise useful. After finishing the previous questions, please take 2-3 minutes to let us know your thoughts here.


These notes have been prepared by Amanda Shaker. The copyright for the material in these notes resides with the authors named above, with the Department of Mathematics and Statistics and with La Trobe University. Copyright in this work is vested in La Trobe University including all La Trobe University branding and naming. Unless otherwise stated, material within this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Non Derivatives License BY-NC-ND.