Statistics Explained: An Introductory Guide for Life Scientists

An understanding of statistics and experimental design is essential for life science studies, but many students lack a mathematical background and some even dread taking an introductory statistics course. Using a refreshingly clear and encouraging reader-friendly approach, this book helps students understand how to choose, carry out, interpret and report the results of complex statistical analyses, critically evaluate the design of experiments and proceed to more advanced material. Taking a straightforward conceptual approach, it is specifically designed to foster understanding, demystify difficult concepts and encourage the unsure. Even complex topics are explained clearly, using a pictorial approach with a minimum of formulae and terminology. Examples of tests included throughout are kept simple by using small data sets. In addition, end-of-chapter exercises, new to this edition, allow self-testing. Handy diagnostic tables help students choose the right test for their work and remain a useful refresher tool for postgraduates.

Steve McKillup is an Associate Professor of Biology in the School of Medical and Applied Sciences at Central Queensland University, Rockhampton. He has received several tertiary teaching awards, including the Vice-Chancellor's Award for Quality Teaching and an Australian Learning and Teaching Council citation 'for developing a highly successful method of teaching complex physiological and statistical concepts, and embodying that method in an innovative international textbook' (2008). He has gained a further citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, in the latest Australian Awards for University Teaching 2014. The citation has been awarded for 'developing resources that engage, empower and enable environmental science students to understand and use biostatistics', which includes his books on statistics that are being used worldwide. He is the author of Geostatistics Explained: An Introductory Guide for Earth Scientists (Cambridge, 2010).