READING RSS LOCAL GROUP - SUMMER MEETING, WEDNESDAY 5 JULY
STATISTICS IN THE PUBLIC EYE
Have you ever wondered how, on election night, the BBC and ITV manage to
predict the final outcome so accurately after only five results have been
declared? Have you ever wondered whether there is a conpiracy afoot when
your boss tells you that you can't have a big pay rise because the rate of
inflation is only 1%? Have you ever wondered what it means when the weather
girl on the television says there is a 30% chance of rain? And have you
ever wondered how they can possibly know when some organisation or other
says that GM crops do/do not* (*delete as appropriate) harm the environment?
Your local group committee in Reading is breaking new ground by bringing you
the answers to these and other important questions. We have selected a
number of issues that regularly get aired in the media and found speakers
who can explain the statistical ideas that underpin them.
Therefore, if you want to find out the answers to these and other questions,
you will need go to Reading University on Wednesday 5th July at 1.30 pm.
Please do come along - and invite your friends and colleagues too - they do
not need to be members of the RSS. It should prove to be a very interesting
afternoon!
The meeting will take place at 1:30 pm in room UG01, Meteorology Building
(near to the Applied Statistics Building), University of Reading (Earley
Gate entrance to campus).
If you need more help with directions please contact Dr. Neil Butler at the
University
(Tel: 0118 931 6513 or email [log in to unmask])
The Speakers and Titles are:
Election Night Forecasting for the BBC.
Phil Brown (University of Kent)
Farm Scale Trials of Genetically Modified Herbicide Tolerant Crops: How do
we Measure the Effect on the Environment?
Peter Rothery (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Monks Wood) and Joe Perry
(Institute of Arable Crops Research, Rothamsted)
Current Research into the UK Retail Price Index
Dawn Camus and Adrian Ball (Office of National Statistics)
Probabilities in Weather Forecasting: What do they mean?
Gil Ross (Meteorological Office, Bracknell)
Nick Moon (National Opinion Polls)
Opinion Polls - more than just statistics.
The meeting will start at 1:30 pm and should finish around 5:30 pm when wine
and soft drinks will be available in the Applied Statistics Building
we hope to see you there.
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