When CANSSI Prairies launched its Workshop Series in Data Science in 2023, Regional Director Mohammad Jafari Jozani, a Professor in the Department of Statistics at the University of Manitoba, expressed his hope that it would give participants “the opportunity to explore new topics, learn cutting-edge techniques, and connect with experts in the field.”
The inaugural workshop, held at the University of Winnipeg on August 22, 2023, did exactly that.
More than 40 people attended online or in person to hear Babette Brumback (pictured above), Professor Emerita in the Department of Biostatistics at the University of Florida, deliver a multi-session presentation on Fundamentals of Causal Inference: With R.
Wide Appeal and Expanded Expertise
Melody Ghahramani, a Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Winnipeg and a member of the organizing committee, noted that the planners were looking for a topic with wide appeal and “a researcher whose area of expertise lies outside that of the expertise of faculty at CANSSI Prairies member institutions.”
“Causal inference was deemed to be one such area,” explained Melody. “That Professor Brumback is the author of a recently published book on causal inference that is accessible to senior undergraduate students, as well as to higher-level students, was an important deciding factor—not all CANSSI Prairies member institutions have a graduate program in statistics.”
Melody was especially pleased to see participants from outside academia.
“It was great to see data scientists in government and industry attend the workshop,” she said. “In addition to learning a new area in statistics, I was also hoping for the workshop to enable students to network for future employment opportunities or to meet future graduate student supervisors.”
The Next Workshop Is Coming Up
The next workshop in the series will take place on Monday, April 29, 2024. Eric Kolaczyk, a Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at McGill University, will lead an in-person and online workshop on “Statistical Analysis of Network Data.”
