The second group project will consist of analysis of a data set or simulation study of interest to group participants. Provided below is a list of possible data sets with a short description of each. Group assignments can be found on Carmen.
Goals
There are several goals for this project:
- Gain exposure to and experience with some modern methods for dealing with complex data settings.
- Learn to think critically about how to interpret results.
- Develop skill in describing and presenting analysis, both in written and in oral formats.
Main Idea
Many of the projects involve learning about modern statistical methods we have not discussed in the class, and using R packages. Please get started early so that we can help you with the material and the code!
Timeline
Like last time, there are four “assignments” associated with the project. Their due dates are:
- Project Selection - Wednesday, November 14, 11:59 PM
- Project Presentation - Thursday, November 29, 11:59 PM
- A PDF of the presentation should be emailed to
dalpiaz.14@osu.edu by this time. The presentations will take place during class on Friday, November 30.
- Project Report - Wednesday, December 5, 11:59 PM
- Peer Review - Wednesday, December 5, 11:59 PM
Presentation Guidelines
Some general guidelines for preparing group presentations:
- Prepare powerpoint (or similar) slides for your presentation.
- Each group member should participate in the group presentation in some way.
- Structure your presentation as follows:
- Introduction and description of the data.
- Statement of the problem of interest (e.g., what quantities are you trying to estimate, and why are they interesting?)
- Methods used in the project.
- Presentation results, including graphs, estimators, comparisons by groups, etc.
- Discussion of results – what other data do you wish had been collected? What interesting observations arose from your analysis?
- Aim to have a presentation that is no longer than six minutes. We will be on a tight schedule, and we would like a couple minutes for questions.
Additional details can be found in the Formats and Rubrics document.
Report Guidelines
Some general guidelines for preparing the project report:
- Structure your report in a similar style to your presentation (see above).
- Reports should be “approximately” three pages (double-spaced) of text. In addition, include relevant plots and figures, with titles and captions. Plots and figures should be near where they are referenced in the text.
- You do not need to include code with your project write-up (though I may request your code after you submit your report).
- You do not need to include mathematical derivations of estimators in your project write-up.
- Pay attention to grammar, spelling, formatting, etc. This is designed to provide practice for the real world, where you would provide reports to clients or to your boss. Use professional language, provide references, etc.
Additional details can be found in the Formats and Rubrics document.
Data and Project Selection
There are two ways to proceed:
- Pick a project form the list below.
- Suggest a new dataset and project.
- This option will allow for the possibility of up to three “buffer” points. (See grading details below.)
- Some possible sources of data are listed below.
- Do read through the available projects to get a sense of the scope of what is possible and expected.
For either, an email must be sent to dalpiaz.14@osu.edu by a single group member with the exact subject line [STAT 3202] Group #N, Project Choice where #N is your group number by Wednesday, November 14, 11:59 PM. You must CC all additional team members.
If you would like to use a pre-made project, you must provide a ranked list of three possible projects. (We will attempt to have no overlap between groups.)
If you would like to suggest a new dataset and project, you must do the following:
- Provide the data and/or an
R Markdown file that proves that you can read the data into R.
- A brief description and source of the data.
- Suggested use of the data.
- Suggest a method not seen in class to be used.
If you would like to suggest a new dataset and project it is highly recommended that you discuss it with the instructor in office hours ASAP.
After collecting this information, the instructor will approve suggested projects, and assign pre-made projects based on rankings. (They will be given out based on when emails are received.)
Possible Projects
These projects were prepared by professors Kubatko and Sinnott in previous semesters. They are presented here with some modifications.
Grading
The total points for the project is 100. There are broken down by task:
- Project Selection: 5
- Project Presentation: 45
- Project Report: 45
Peer Review: 5
- Grading for the project selection is based only on completion.
Grading of the peer review will be mostly based on completion of a brief, anonymous feedback form about your group members. (To be released.) While you will be evaluating your peers, it will not necessarily directly impact their grades. Only in rare circumstances where the instructor believes that a group member had nearly zero participation will the peer evaluations effect their grade.
Rubrics for the report and presentation can be found in the Formats and Rubrics document.
Tips
- Do not try to split up the analysis Everyone should attempt to do a full analysis, then compare and contrast results before writing the report.
- The same goes for writing the report and making the presentation. However, in this case it would be a bad idea to have everyone do it. Someone should take the lead on each of this items, but they should still be a collaborative effort.
- When writing the report, it is always better to write too little than to write to much. In particular, don’t overstate your results. Also, if you find yourself writing something for the sake of writing something, don’t write it. Get to the point. It’s better to write nothing that something that is wrong.
- Everyone should be present when submitting the final report, for two reasons:
- To deal with any last minute changes.’
- So it isn’t a single person’s responsibility to make sure it is submitted on time.