How is it possible that the study of a sample of people over a 20-year period could find the survival rate of smokers to be 74 percent, while that of non-smokers was only 69 percent? Simple, it's Simpson's Paradox!
This is just one of many statistics-related ideas that Brenda Gunderson, a lecturer in the Department of Statistics, discussed during her "ideal last lecture" yesterday evening at Rackham Auditorium after accepting the ninth annual Golden Apple Award.
About 200 members of the University community attended Gunderson's lecture titled, "A Paradox, A Penny and A Performance," that covered not only the topic of statistics, but the value of family, friends and teaching.
During her 10 years at the University, Gunderson has taught more than 8,000 students and helped make the sometimes daunting subject of statistics a little more palatable.
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| DHANI JONES/Daily Golden Apple winner Brenda Gunderson demonstrates an analogy to learning yesterday in Rackham Ampitheatre. |
"As a teacher we should be a model for our students," Gunderson said, adding that through her teaching, she is able to "touch the lives of students so they can discover their own gifts and put them to good use."
Gunderson said that she tries to make statistics fun by relating it to real life, following the model of "less symbols and more words." She used examples as varied as diagnostic drug testing and the proportion of adults who "surf the net" on a daily basis, to illustrate the art of statistics in real-life applications.
"Her speech was very indicative of the way that she teaches ... every time she speaks you can tell she really cares about what she's teaching," said Adam Tobias, an LSA junior and a current student of Gunderson's. "She takes an otherwise unexciting topic and makes it easy to listen to."
The presentation, organized by Students Honoring Outstanding University Teaching, was the culmination of a campus-wide nomination and selection process that began in September.
Stephanie Lovinger, chair of the SHOUT committee, said she was pleased with the final product. "We had a great group here tonight, a great audience who was lively and engaged," Lovinger said, adding, of the lecture, "I loved it. I thought it was very entertaining while getting a great message across."
"She makes students want to learn stats," said Kristie Diefenbaker, an LSA senior and statistics concentrator.
Gunderson's lecture ended with her performance of a song, a solo guitar routine that included the message, "use what gifts and talents you possess." As the 1999 Golden Apple Award recipient, Gunderson was honored for doing just that.
03-25-99
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