Bin Yu and Rebecca Barter
ASA members Bin Yu of the University of California, Berkeley and Rebecca Barter of Utah University Medical School released the print version of their new book Veridical Data Science: The Practice of Responsible Data Analysis and Decision Making via MIT Press.
The book demonstrates how to use the principles of predictability, computability, and stability to create and evaluate trustworthy data-driven results by conducting stress tests at every stage of the data science life cycle—from problem formulation and data cleaning to modeling and communicating results.
Veridical Data Science arose from the graduate statistics class Yu has taught for many years at Berkeley and evolved to embody her research philosophy. It is a resource for data science, statistics, and applied machine learning classes as one of the textbooks or supplementary reading. It is intended for upper-division and beginning graduate students, as well as for domain scientists entering data science.
Read the open-access version of their book or buy the print version.
Eugenia Cheng
Eugenia Cheng was recently honored with the 2025 Joint Policy Board for Mathematics Communications Award “for her remarkable work bringing mathematics, mathematical ideas, and mathematical art to a wide audience through a multitude of books and other media,” according to the prize citation.
Cheng, a scientist in residence at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, won tenure in pure mathematics at the University in Sheffield and holds a PhD in pure mathematics from the University of Cambridge. She was an early pioneer of math on YouTube and has written eight math books, including Beyond Infinity, which was shortlisted for the Royal Society Science Book Prize; Is Math Real?, which won the 2024 LA Times Book Prize for Science and Technology; and two children’s books. She has given talks and interviews around the world, including for the BBC, NPR, and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. She wrote the Everyday Math column for The Wall Street Journal for seven years and has completed several art and song commissions, including one for a GRAMMY-nominated album.
The Joint Policy Board for Mathematics Communications Award was established in 1988 and is given annually to reward and encourage communicators who, on a sustained basis, bring mathematical ideas and information to nonmathematical audiences. The current prize amount is $2,000, and up to two awards are made annually.
The board is a collaborative effort of the American Mathematical Society, American Statistical Association, Mathematical Association of America,
and Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.
The award will be presented at the 2025 Joint Mathematics Meetings in Seattle, Washington.
Visit the American Mathematical Society website to read more about Cheng.
Sally C. Morton
Sally C. Morton was recently elected to the National Academy of Medicine. Morton, who is executive vice president of Knowledge Enterprise and professor of statistics at Arizona State University, Tempe was selected for preeminent leadership in statistics, health policy, and science in both academic and nonprofit research institutions. She was also elected for excellence in evidence synthesis of clinical and public health issues and impactful methodology in patient-centered comparative effectiveness research. Her contributions to clinical practice guidelines and health care interventions have reduced morbidity and mortality.
“This class of new members represents the most exceptional researchers and leaders in health and medicine, who have made significant breakthroughs, led the response to major public health challenges, and advanced health equity,” said National Academy of Medicine President Victor J. Dzau. “Their expertise will be necessary to supporting NAM’s work to address the pressing health and scientific challenges we face today. It is my privilege to welcome these esteemed individuals to the National Academy of Medicine.”
The academy elected 90 regular members and 10 international members during its annual meeting. Election to the academy is considered one of the highest honors in the health and medicine fields.
Visit the academy website to view all the elected members.
Yao Xie and Yang Chen
The 2024 winners of the Caucus for Women in Statistics and Data Science’s Woodroofe Award are Yao Xie of Georgia Tech and Yang Chen of the University of Michigan, who were presented the award during the International Day of Women in Statistics and Data Science program. There will be an invited session in their honor at 2025 Joint Statistical Meetings in Nashville, Tennessee, and the 2026 International Workshop in Sequential Methodologies in Washington, DC.
Xie was honored with the Woodroofe Award for her innovative methods in statistical learning and the significant strides she has made in sequential analysis and change-point detection. Her work tackles real-world challenges by developing advanced algorithms for big data problems, including sparse changes in high-dimensional data and spatiotemporal modeling. Notably, her methods have been successfully applied to enhance crime data analysis and optimize police zone designs, demonstrating profound societal impact. Xie’s research combines rigorous statistical theory with practical applications, making her a standout in the statistics and data science fields.
Chen was recognized for her cutting-edge work in statistical learning, particularly within space science and astrophysics. Her innovative methodologies address the complexities of big data challenges, including developing advanced techniques for data-driven space, weather predictions, and high-resolution solar imaging. She has contributed to practical applications in managing vast data streams from space-borne telescopes. Chen’s methods are also at the forefront of addressing critical data-analytic challenges, showcasing a blend of theoretical insight and impactful real-world applications.
The Woodroofe Award was founded by Dong-Yun Kim in 2023 to honor Michael Woodroofe and women who have made significant contributions to solve real-world problems by applying novel or existing theories.
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