The ASA recently formed the Caucus of Industry Representatives to promote statistics and data science in the private and public sectors and provide resources to successfully advocate for the discipline. Ginger Holt, who is leading the effort as chair of the executive committee, and committee member Amarjot Kaur talk shop with Practical Significance co-hosts Donna LaLonde and Ron Wasserstein, touching on everything from the most significant challenges facing industry statisticians and data scientists to the opportunities and implications of large language models.
Holt, senior staff data scientist at DataBricks, …

Practical Significance co-hosts Donna and Ron welcome John Bailer and Rosemary Pennington, co-hosts of Stats+Stories, a podcast about “the statistics behind the stories and the stories behind the statistics.” Their show features an eclectic mix of topics, from economics to the environment to media, methods, sports, and more. John and Rosemary come from opposite backgrounds: John, who is a professor emeritus of statistics, is the “Stats” part of the equation. Rosemary, who is an associate professor of journalism at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, is the “Stories” part.
In addition to …

Did you know the ASA publishes or co-publishes 16 journals focusing on statistics in business and economics, biopharmaceutical research, agriculture, biology, the environment, sports, surveys, and so much more? Eric Sampson oversees production (a Herculean effort) and has served as the ASA journals manager since 2008.
Practical Significance co-hosts Donna and Ron talk with Eric in depth about his role and what changes he anticipates in the publishing world. Eric also gives advice for authors seeking the best outlet for their work.
We also discover Eric is a competitive equestrian, …

Shakespeare asks, “What’s in a name?” in the play Romeo and Juliet, the purpose of which is to focus our attention on what’s important. This month, Practical Significance explores what’s important for an ASA meeting or conference to be successful as co-hosts Donna and Ron welcome Julia Sharp, chair of the ASA Meetings Task Force, to the show.
The ASA Board charged the task force with developing recommendations for ensuring those attending the ASA’s smaller meetings such as the Conference on Statistical Practice, Women in Statistics & Data Science, Symposium on …

The Coit Tower offers a 360-degree view of San Francisco and, this month, Practical Significance offers a 360 of the 2023 Conference on Statistical Practice, recently held in the beautiful “City by the Bay.” Co-hosts Donna and Ron took the show on the road and recorded this episode live at the conference, which brought together nearly 400 statisticians and data scientists who shared insights on and solutions to real-world problems.
On the conference’s final day, a gathering of brave souls stepped up to the podcast mic—including members of the CSP steering …

With a nod to Valentine’s Day, the February edition of Practical Significance embraces the theme, “What’s Love Got to Do with It?” and features three couples who truly appreciate the perks of having a statistician as a partner. Co-hosts Donna and Ron welcome Emily and Eric Griffith, Jeri and Ed Mulrow, and Jack Miller and Melinda Baham to the show.
The three couples share a bit about their day jobs and how they met and offer strategies for maintaining that elusive goal of work-life balance. Also, don’t miss Ron’s traditional Top …

Practical Significance kicks off the new year with its January tradition of featuring the new ASA president. Co-hosts Donna and Ron welcome to the show Dionne Price, the 118th president of the American Statistical Association.
Dionne—who is the deputy director of the Office of Biostatistics, Office of Translational Sciences, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, US Food and Drug Administration—shares aspects of her “day” job and her goals for the year ahead. Listen to how an internship sparked her passion for biostatistics and how she puts the FDA and ASA missions …

Practical Significance is celebrating its second year, and we are grateful to our devoted listeners—thank you! Over the last 24 months, we’ve developed a few traditions, including honoring our outgoing ASA board members. For the final episode of 2022, co-hosts Donna and Ron welcome to the show Scarlett Bellamy, Rebecca Hubbard, Ji-Hyun Lee, and Alexandra Schmidt, who will each end their tenure this month.
They share what they’ve learned from serving and how it’s influenced their view of the profession, favorite memories, and the opportunities and challenges they see ahead for …

Did you know the ASA is a member of the Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA), a nonprofit advocacy organization working to promote and advance the social and behavioral sciences in federal policymaking? COSSA member benefits are available to all ASA members.
COSSA Executive Director Wendy Naus joins co-hosts Donna LaLonde and Ron Wasserstein for this month’s edition of Practical Significance to discuss the consortium’s mission and initiatives and the impact of its work on ASA members. COSSA offers resources and events like webinars, training, and opportunities to engage with policymakers—which …

In February 2022, the ASA Board of Directors approved revisions to the Ethical Guidelines for Statistical Practice, and this episode is a behind-the-scenes look at that process. Committee on Professional Ethics members Jing Cao and Stephanie Shipp join us to discuss their evolving understanding of the ethical practice and the two-year endeavor by the Committee on Professional Ethics to complete the revisions.
They share the process by which the committee approached the revisions, the rationale for adopting specific terminology, and the decision to add an appendix to the guidelines. During the …