Social Statistics
Discover Ne
w
Ideas at
Statistical Computing
and Graphics
JSM in Denver
Chambers
Sharon Stern, Social Statistics Section Publications Officer, and
Kathy O’Connor, 2009 Social Statistics Section Program Chair
Award Winner
Announced
T
his year, the SSS is pleased to sponsor two roundtable luncheons exploring sub-
stantive and methodological topics central to our work. Roundtable luncheons
are 80 minutes in length and allow participants to meet discussion leaders in a
J.R. Lockwood, RAND Corporation,
more relaxed setting than contributed or plenary sessions. Take advantage of these
Section Awards Chair
extended, relaxed opportunities to learn about and comprehensively discuss important
issues in social statistics. Because participation is limited, sign up for these sessions when
you register and plan your JSM 2008 schedule. Participation will incur an extra charge
due to the full lunch served during the discussion. Eat and stimulate your brain, not just
W
e are pleased to announce
that the judges of the
your digestive system!
Chambers Award have
selected the winner of the 2008 com-
Our sponsored sessions include the following:
petition: Alejandro Jara Vallejos, from
the Catholic University of Leuven.
delving into Multiple Methods to examine the Relationship Between
Alejandro received this year’s award for
Psychological Measurement and empirical Outcome
his submission, “DPpackage,” an R
Monday, August 4
package for Bayesian semiparametric
Gideon D. Bahn of Loyola University Chicago will lead a discussion about the use
and nonparametric models. Vallejos
of multiple methods to answer complex research questions. Although this presenta-
will be presented with his award during
tion focuses on Korean-American youth, the topic and methods may be of interest
the Statistical Computing and Graphics
to researchers in areas such as immigration, multicultural settings, education, and/or
Section mixer at JSM 2008.
multigenerational immigrant family research. Bahn and his colleagues used multiple
The John M. Chambers Award
statistical methods to examine the relationship between Korean-American students’
is endowed by Chambers’ generous
academic achievement and their family backgrounds, specifically the fundamental
donation of the prestigious Software
ideology of Korean education: the five Confucian moral codes. The data were ana-
System Award of the Association for
lyzed by a sensitivity analysis for Hybrid Path Model and Path Analysis in Structural
Computing Machinery, presented to
Equation Modeling, post-hoc analysis in Analysis of Variance, and Backward Multiple
him in 1998 for the design and devel-
Linear Regression Modeling. Results suggest Korean-American students’ high academic
opment of the S language. The compe-
achievement is related more to their parents’ financial support than the degree to which
tition is open to small teams of devel-
their parents retain traditional beliefs about Korean educational values embodied in the
opers (which must include at least one
five Confucian moral codes.
student or recent graduate) who have
designed and implemented a piece
From data to action: a Case Study to disseminate and Communicate Children’s
of statistical software. The winner is
Health Statistics to Multiple Stakeholders through an Online data tool
selected by a panel of three judges,
Wednesday, August 6
indicated by the section’s awards offi-
Kathleen S. O’Connor of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will
cer. Further details about the require-
lead a discussion about an innovative data access tool that readily expands and expedites
ments for submission and eligibility
access to more than 60 health statistics to multiple stakeholders. The Data Resource
criteria are provided in the competi-
Center (DRC) for Child and Adolescent Health, a project of the Child and Adolescent
tion’s announcement, which is distrib-
Health Measurement Initiative at the Oregon Health & Science University, was designed
uted in early October, and at http://
to enhance data access and use for audiences with various degrees of statistical expertise.
stat-computing.org. The prize includes
The DRC database includes data from several large cross-sectional surveys conducted by
a plaque, an award of $1,000, and a
the CDC and sponsored by the Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal
$1,000 allowance for travel and hotel
and Child Health Bureau. Learn about challenges to select and display various child
expenses to attend JSM (with registra-
health and well-being indicators at the national and state levels, while offering hands-on
tion fee covered by the section).
technical assistance and targeted outreach and educational resources.
For more information about these roundtables or to offer ideas for 2009 invited sessions,
contact the section’s 2009 Program Chair, Kathy O’Connor, at kdo7@cdc.gov. n
44 AMSTAT NEWS JUNE 2008
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