Brian Millen was elected the ASA’s 122nd president and Julia Sharp was elected vice president. They are both committed to raising the visibility of the statistical profession and advancing sound statistical practice.
NIST
Amanda Koepke
Amanda Koepke knew from an early age she loved math and was introduced to statistics in high school. Despite loving statistics, she didn’t know what careers would be available to her upon graduation, so she majored in accounting at Texas Tech University. Eventually, she switched her major to psychology and mathematics and statistics. After finishing her undergraduate work, becoming a statistician seemed like the perfect way to merge her love of math and the social sciences, so she pursued her PhD in statistics from the University of Washington. Today, she is a mathematical statistician at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, where she works side-by-side with scientists doing cutting-edge research.
Nell Sedransk
The ink was barely dry on Nell Sedransk’s PhD when she joined the department of surgery at the University of Wisconsin and assembled a clinical trials statistical center for cancer research. Spending time at the radiologist’s elbow, she learned the boundaries of a lung tumor are not sharp and distinct, exact repetition of an X-Ray is technically not possible, and the best in the world cannot measure without error. Later, she took research leadership appointments at the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) and National Institute of Statistical Sciences (NISS). At NIST, she became part of the multidisciplinary team overseeing modeling to determine the cause and process of the World Trade Center collapse. At NISS, she focused on research, mentoring, and program building. She has always wanted to keep learning; being a statistician has fulfilled that wish.
Karen Kafadar
Karen Kafadar had the great fortune to heed the council of her master’s adviser, Bradley Efron, and earn her PhD in statistics. It was during her studies she learned from some of the best, including John Tukey. Her career is living proof of the influence others can have on a career. Besides her service to the ASA, she has worked in applications such as forensic science and randomized cancer screening trials.
2018 SPAIG Award Lauds Forensic Science Collaboration
The 2018 SPAIG award recognizes the collaborative work between the Center for Statistics and Applications in Forensic Evidence and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
NIST Sponsors Data Science Competition
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is sponsoring a data science competition with a prize purse of $190,000.