In
the February issue of Significance, distinguished Australian statistician Noel Cressie and co-authors describe how they ‘watch earth breathe’. They introduce a new statistical framework to monitor the distribution of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, helping scientists and policy-makers take decisions about climate action.
This issue also takes a statistical view of the chess cheating scandal, the fight against tuberculosis (and how pop stars can help), the odds of getting a parking fine in New York City, the behaviour of lottery players, and much more. You’ll also meet Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, who’ll be the ASA’s first woman president of Asian origin, and find all the essential information on our 2023 writing competition: the
2023 Statistical Excellence Award for Early-Career Writing.
February issue highlights:
Chess cheats in check?
As the chess world reels from a cheating scandal, Jordi Prats looks at the problem of computer-assisted cheating and efforts to combat it.
Earth’s CO2 battle: a view from space
Our environment is undergoing rapid change as greenhouse gases warm the planet. Noel Cressie, Andrew Zammit-Mangion, Josh Jacobson, and Michael Bertolacci use WOMBAT, a Bayesian hierarchical statistical framework, to infer the spatio-temporal distribution of CO2 surface fluxes.
Music, tuberculosis and stats: Lessons from a Ugandan pop star
Epidemiologists Sandra Alba and Amera Khan catch up with Bebe Cool, their superstar collaborator on a passion-fuelled project to combat TB.
Does it pay to park in front of a fire hydrant?
You’re a New York motorist, running horribly late, and there’s an empty space beckoning right outside your destination. Problem is, it’s in front of a fire hydrant. Should you risk getting a ticket? Take some advice from Chris Andrade, Jonathan Auerbach, Icaro Bacelar, Hane Lee, Angela Tan, Mariana Vazquez, and Owen Ward.
Which lottery numbers do players play?
The Irish national lottery went through 62 rollovers during 2021 and 2022 before a winner finally claimed the top prize. James Hanley and Michael Cronin use data from four continents to examine what lies behind lottery droughts, and estimate the most, and least, popular numbers being picked.
Interview: Ian Gordon
Ian Gordon has spent 40 years working as an applied statistician and was recently appointed President of the Statistical Society of Australia (SSA). As director of the Statistical Consulting Centre at the University of Melbourne, his clients are diverse and he has acted as an expert witness in high-profile legal cases, including for victims of fires, floods, racial discrimination and pelvic mesh implants. Hayley Bennett finds out more.
Questions answered: Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar
Meet the 119th president of the American Statistical Association, who is also its first woman president of Asian origin.
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www.significancemagazine.com