Text Readings:

Essentials of Epidemiology in Public Health, Chapter 12

A Study Guide to Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Chapters 8 - 9; 11

Web Readings:

Errors in Epidemiological Research

Learning Objectives

Upon completing this class, students will be able to:

1. Discuss the key phases in the history of biostatistics.
2. Define chance, precision, and random error.
3. Describe the process of hypothesis testing, calculate hypothesis testing statistics, and interpret a P value.
4. Describe the process of confidence interval estimation and interpret 95% confidence intervals.
5. Calculate measures of central tendency and dispersion for data with normal, binomial, and Poisson distributions.
6. Calculate 95% confidence intervals for measures of disease frequency and association.
7. Explain the elements of sample size and power calculations.
8. Explain sampling bias, and describe how random sampling operates to avoid bias in the process of data collection.
9. Distinguish between the standard deviation and the standard error, and give one example of the use of each.
10. Interpret statements of statistical significance  with regard to comparisons of means and frequencies and explain what is meant by a statement such as P<.05.
11. Distinguish between the statistical significance of a result and its importance in clinical applications.

Assignment for Session Twelve

Complete the odd numbered questions for the exercises associated with chapters 9 and 11 in A Study Guide to Epidemiology & Bisostatistics and questions 1 and 3 at the end of Chapter 12 of Essentials of Epidemiology in Public Health.. Finally, in preparation for the final exam, be sure that you can answer all of the questions posed in the learning objectives.