Mind on Statistics

MIND ON STATISTICS helps you develop a conceptual understanding of statistical ideas and shows you how to find meaning in data. The authors--who are committed to changing any preconception you may have about statistics being boring--engage your curiosity with intriguing questions, and explain statistical topics in the context of interesting, useful examples and case studies. You'll develop your statistical intuition by focusing on analyzing data and interpreting results, rather than on mathematical formulation. As a result, you'll build both your statistical literacy and your understanding of statistical methodology.

Jessica Utts is Professor of Statistics at the University of California at Irvine. She received her B.A. in math and psychology at SUNY Binghamton, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in statistics at Penn State University. Aside from MIND ON STATISTICS, she is the author of SEEING THROUGH STATISTICS and the co-author with Robert Heckard of STATISTICAL IDEAS AND METHODS both published by Cengage Learning. Jessica has been active in the Statistics Education community at the high school and college level. She served as a member and then chaired the Advanced Placement Statistics Development Committee for six years, and was a member of the American Statistical Association task force that produced the GAISE (Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education) recommendations for Elementary Statistics courses. She is the recipient of the Academic Senate Distinguished Teaching Award and the Magnar Ronning Award for Teaching Excellence, both at the University of California at Davis. She is also a fellow of the American Statistical Association, the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Beyond statistics education, Jessica�s major contributions have been in applying statistics to a variety of disciplines, most notably to parapsychology, the laboratory study of psychic phenomena. She has appeared on numerous television shows, including LARRY KING LIVE, ABCNIGHTLINE, CNN MORNING NEWS, and 20/20, and most recently appears in a documentary included on the DVD with the movie SUSPECT ZERO.

Robert F. Heckard is a senior lecturer in statistics at the Pennsylvania State University, where he has taught for more than 30 years. He has taught introductory and intermediate applied statistics to more than 15,000 college students. Bob has been awarded several grants to develop multimedia and web-based instructional materials for teaching statistical concepts. Aside from MIND ON STATISTICS, he is the co-author of STATISTICAL IDEAS AND METHODS (first edition, 2006, Cengage Learning). As a consultant, he is active in the statistical analysis and design of highway safety research and has frequently been a consultant in cancer treatment clinical trials.