Lecture 2

Question 1

What is the scientific method

Answer 1

• a process we use to gain knoledge and understanding through testing of hypothesis
• statistics provides much of the framework and mechanisms for implementing the scientific method

Question 2

Hypothesis =

Answer 2

Refined research question

Question 3

Scientific method flow chart

Answer 3

Question 4

Scientific Method experiment guy

Answer 4

Ferdinand Magellan

Question 5

The ____ of the ______ regarding our ____ is _____ dependent upon the ______ of the ______

Answer 5

The reliability of the evidence regarding our hypothesis is critically dependent upon the quality of the research

Question 6

Evidence based policy

Answer 6

Aims to apply the best available evidence gained from the scientific method to policy making

Question 7

Evidence based practice

Answer 7

• preferential use of interventions or actions for which systematic empirical research has provided reliable evidence of benefit

Question 8

What is bio stats?

Answer 8

Biostatistics is the development and application of statistical methods to answer research questions in the health sciences

Question 9

Health sciences reaserch goal

Answer 9

To improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities.

This involves:
- prevention of disease
- treatment if disease
- promotion of health

In order to do this we need knoledge about:
- cause of disease
- diagnosis of disease
- diagnosis process
- effective treatments
- societal factors which affect health

Question 10

Research

Answer 10

Is a process for providing reliable answers to questions for which the answer is not immediately available

Question 11

Research provides…

Answer 11

A systematic process for obtaining reliable answers to such questions

Question 12

Research process steps

Answer 12

1. Development of research question
2. Design of study
3. Collection of data
4. Description/analysis of data
5. Interpretation of results

Question 13

The ____ of the _____ question will include _____ of a model for the process under ____ and any ____ to be tested. The ______ _____ refers to the methods used to select the study participants, ______ any experimental conditions, and collect the ___.

Answer 13

The specification of the research question will include determination of a model for the process under study, and any hypothesis to be tested. The study design refers to the methods used to select the study particicpants, control any experimental conditions and collect the data

Question 14

Inference

Answer 14

The aim of most research studies is to use data form a sample to draw inference about a particular characteristic of a larger population

Question 15

What is a model

Answer 15

• a model describes the relationships between the quantities of internet

Question 16

Variability and uncertainty in models from samples

Answer 16

• if we take two different samples of people from the population, the slop of the line estimated using the first sample would be different from that estimated using the seocond sample
• there is variablillity (or natural variation) in almost everything we may wish to measure
• this leads to uncertainly about true value of the quantity or relationship we wish to measure
• we described this uncertainty using the language of probability
• a statistical model takes account of the uncertainty and includes a mathematical secription of the wat the data are generated