ENTOM 3030 - Applied Statistics: Biological Experiments in Practice

(OPHLS-AG)

Spring. 4 credits. Student option grading.

Prerequisite: introductory class in statistics.

K. Poveda.

In this course, you will get hands-on experience in how to design, analyze, and interpret biological experiments. This class will be particularly useful if you plan to conduct experiments in a greenhouse or field setting. You will learn to develop a scientific question, formulate biological and statistical hypotheses, derive testable predictions, design and conduct experiments, collect your own data, test the proposed hypotheses using appropriate statistical methods, interpret the statistical results within a broader conceptual framework, and finally present statistical methods and results in written and oral form. You will learn common statistical methods (chi-square tests, t-test, ANOVA, Regression) and in-class workshops will familiarize you with the software to run those statistical tests. This class will be based on the scientific method, and the role statistical analysis play within this method. Writing several papers, based on the experiments you performed and analyzed, will allow you to cement this knowledge for your future research.

Outcome 1: Design and plan experiments based on scientific hypotheses.

Outcome 2: Construct a scientific question, formulate biological and statistical hypothesis, derive testable predictions, use a rigorous experimental design, and test the proposed hypotheses.

Outcome 3: Learn when and how to use different experimental designs such as paired designs, randomized blocks, Latin squares, factorial-, split plot- and nested-designs among others.

Outcome 4: Understand the theory behind statistical analysis such as chi-square test, t-test, ANOVA, Regression, ANCOVA, nested analysis, and split-plots.

Outcome 5: Master running the above described analyses in R.

Outcome 6: Analyze and interpret the outcome from your own data and showing a real understanding of the statistical methods.

Outcome 7: Interpret statistical results and make inferences on their biological hypotheses and original question.

Outcome 8: Effectively communicate in written and oral form statistical results in a biological context.

Outcome 9: Write papers that reflect the full understanding of the scientific method from initial question to conclusion with emphasis on experimental design, statistical methods and results.