Jonaki Bose, National Center for Health Statistics

As a recently appointed member of the ASA Committee on Applied Statisticians (CAS), I’m delighted to have the opportunity to share my thoughts about the Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM). For the second year in a row, JSM will be held virtually. And despite this change, the program is replete with a smorgasbord of offerings.

There are sessions on optimal profiles of Major League Baseball starting pitchers, emerging statistical challenges and opportunities in mental health research, and statistical issues related to developing the COVID-19 vaccine. In short, something for everyone.

Applied statisticians, in particular, may find interesting the invited session organized by CAS on the principles of visual communication, titled “Let the Data Tell the Story: Principles of Visual Communication for Effective Collaboration,” August 9 at 1:30 p.m.

JSM is particularly ideal for applied statisticians because there are a multitude of sessions covering the translation of theoretical research into application, as well as documenting and discussing lessons learned from practical experiences. This permits us to step away from the details of our work lives, open our senses, and absorb incremental and drastic ways of improving what we do.

This exposure is often invigorating and permits us to reengage with what we’re doing. I often come back to work energized, ready to tackle a back-burner project that was stumping me or approach existing projects with a new eye.

Part of this reinvigoration occurs from interacting with other professionals. JSM has amazing roundtables that allow access to thinkers, whether they are preeminent scientists in their fields or early-career statisticians who have dug deeply into specific topics. Even in the absence of in-person social events, it is possible to meet and form connections with our colleagues, have conversations about gnarly projects, and feel less isolated. With all the upheavals of the past 15 months, this is what we need. So come on over!