Recent Innovations at Harvard Statistics: Attract More and Train Better

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Recent Innovations at Harvard Statistics
Attract More and Train Better

• Xiao-Li Meng
• Department of Statistics
• Harvard University

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Statistics A Rapidly Changing Field

• A paradigm shift Larger, Deeper, and Faster
• Balance the core development with
• interdisciplinary research
• Carefully reexamine pedagogical and
• infrastructural needs

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A Recent Thesis

• Markov Chain Monte Carlo Applications in
• Bioinformatics and Astrophysics
• Hosung Kang
• May, 2005

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So whats the average scale between these two
extremes?
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Apparently it is about 2.5 by 6
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(No Transcript)
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Examples of Recent Interdisciplinary Teaching

• Computational Biology STAT115/215 S. Liu
  (Biostat) J. Liu
• Social Sciences and Stat STAT214/Econ 1127
  Imbens (Econ) Rubin
• Law and Statistics STAT 245/Law 98350-31
  Greiner (Law) Rubin
• AstroStatistics STAT 310 members of CfA Meng
• Wavelets for Signal and Image Processing
  ES251/STAT251 Wolfe (SEAS) Meng
• Statistical Finance STAT 171/271 Lee Blanchet
• Epidemiology Spatial Stat STAT155/240 Izem,
  Ryan Paciorek (Biostat)

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Initiatives in Undergraduate Education

• Enhance Stat Concentration in quantity and
  quality
• Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Track
  (2006-2007)
• Quantitative Finance Track (2007-2008)
• Examples of New Outreach Courses
• STAT105 (2008, Spring Meng) Real-Life
  Statistics Your Chance of Happiness (or Misery)
• STAT123 (2009, planned Blyth) Quantitative
  Finance for Wall Street

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Revamped Introductory Courses

• STAT 100 for Social Sciences Humanities (2
  offerings)
• STAT 101 for Psychology and the Behavioral
  Sciences
• (2 offerings in AY09)
• STAT102 Biostatistics (1 offering planned to
  expand to 2 offerings for Life and Medical
  Sciences in future)
• STAT103 for Physical Sciences and Engineering
  (planned for AY10)
• STAT104 for Economics (4 offerings in AY09)

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ARIMA model, predicting 25 years with 95
confidence
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So do statisticians do a particular good job in
prediction?
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Innovations in Graduate Education

• STAT303 The Art and Practice of Teaching
  Statistics (Required for all 1st year Ph.D.s)
• STAT399 Problem Solving in Statistics (helping
  Ph.D. students beyond their first year transition
  through the qualifying exams into research).
• Team Teaching of Ph.D. courses (e.g., STAT 210,
  211, 230 by Blitzstein and Morris scribe notes)
• Team Course Designs by graduate students and
  faculty
• (e.g, STAT105 by Meng and the Happy Team of
  7 Ph.D. and Masters students)
• Awards for Bi-annual Post-qualifying Presentations

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Initiatives for 2009-2010

• Writing Workshop for J-term
• Departmental teaching blog
• Bi-annual teaching retreat
• ...