SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY
Graduate School of Public Health
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
PH 602 Biostatistics
Section
2
Day
Wednesday
3 units
Time
4:00pm – 6:40pm
Instructor: LaRee A. Tracy, MA, Ph.D.
E-mail: ltracy@mail.sdsu.edu
Fall 2013
Location
HH 210
Schedule No.
22312
Office location: Hardy Tower 230
Office hours: Wednesday 6:45-8:00 PM
Course Description:
Statistical reasoning applied to public health research; probability, hypothesis testing, regression and
correlation, analysis of variance, measurement theory and modeling.
Required Texts:
– Rosner: Fundamentals of Biostatistics, 7th Edition.
– Alcaraz: “PH 602 Lecture Notes” (Lecture notes should be brought to every class meeting)
Calculator:
Students will need a scientific calculator which, in addition to performing the basic arithmetic operations,
should have at least the following functions: x 2 , x , y x , e x , and ln (natural log).
Grading System:
Exam I:
Exam II:
Final Exam:
Homework:
25%
25%
50%
5% (see below)
93 – 100 = A
90 – 93 = A–
87 – 90 = B+
83 – 87 = B
80 – 83 = B–
77 – 80 = C+
73 – 77 = C
70 – 73 = C–
67 – 70 = D+
63 – 67 = D
60 – 63 = D–
0 – 60 = F
Exams:
All exams are in-class, open-book and open-notes, and calculators are required. The dates below are
subject to change:
Exam
Date
Chapters in Lecture Notes
I
September 25
Ch 3–6
II
October 30
Ch 7–9, part of 10
Final part 1
December 4
Ch 3–9
Final part 2
December 11
Ch 10–12
Homework Assignment:
The one homework assignment that you are expected to hand in will be assigned on September 18 and
due on October 2 (dates subject to change). Although it is required, it will count as 5% extra credit in
your course grade.
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Practice Exercises (not to be confused with homework assignment):
Practice exercises will include problems taken from the text or from other sources. Although the exercises
will not be graded, you are expected to complete them. Solutions will be posted on Blackboard. If time
permits, some exercises may be discussed in class.
Prerequisites:
None, but students are strongly encouraged to have taken an elementary statistics course within the past
three years.
Background:
Students are expected to know descriptive statistics (Ch 2. Rosner); this material will not be covered in
the course. Students should be familiar with basic concepts of probability (3.1 – 3.6, Rosner), the
binomial distribution (4.8 – 4.9), the normal distribution (5.3 – 5.4), basic concepts of estimation (6.1 –
6.3), and basic concepts of hypothesis testing (7.1 – 7.2). These topics will be reviewed in the lectures;
however, extensive discussions of this material will not be pursued.
Learning Objectives:
In this course, students will learn basic biostatistical methods used in biomedical and public health
research. Students will be able to recognize and apply the appropriate biostatistical procedures to the
analysis of health-related studies. Students will learn:
1. To recognize the appropriate use of the binomial, normal, Student’s t, chi-square and F distributions
in estimation and hypothesis testing.
2. To describe the relationship between populations and samples, and the crucial role that random
sampling plays in statistics.
3. To estimate such parameters as means, variances, and proportions, and to test hypotheses about these
parameters (confidence intervals, one-sample test for proportion, one-sample t-test, two-sample t-test,
paired t-test).
4. To apply nonparametric tests (Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Wilcoxon rank-sum test) when the
underlying distributional assumptions are not met.
5. To assess the association—through relative risk or odds ratio estimation and through hypothesis
testing (contingency tables)—between two variables when both variables represent groupings into
categories or classes.
6. To understand the appropriate use of simple linear regression and correlation, and to estimate
parameters and test hypotheses about linear relationships.
7. To complete a one-way analysis of variance model for comparing three or more means, and to
describe procedures for performing multiple pairwise comparisons among these means.
Attendance/Punctuality:
While attendance is not required except for exam dates, students are strongly encouraged to attend every
class meeting and to be punctual. On exam dates, the exam will start at 4:00pm sharp and will end at
6:40pm sharp. Those who arrive late on exam dates will not be allowed to work past the end time to
complete their exams.
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If you miss an exam because of severe circumstances (such as illness, injury, death in the family), please
contact me either PRIOR to the exam or no later than one week after the exam to arrange a makeup test.
Students for whom an exam falls on a date of religious observance should contact me by the end of the
second week of classes to discuss alternative arrangements.
Student Conduct and Grievances:
SDSU is committed to maintaining a safe and healthy living and learning environment for students,
faculty and staff. Section 41301, Standards for Student Conduct (at http://csrr.sdsu.edu/conduct1.html ),
and Sections 41302-41304 of the University Policies regarding student conduct should be reviewed.
If a student believes that a professor’s treatment is grossly unfair or that a professor’s behavior is clearly
unprofessional, the student may bring the complaint to the proper university authorities and official
reviewing bodies. See University Policies on Student Grievances.
Academic Ethics:
SDSU has a strict code of ethical conduct which students are expected to follow. See
http://csrr.sdsu.edu/conduct1.html for details. In particular, cheating on the exams will not be tolerated.
You may not work together on the exams, may not copy answers from other students, and may not allow
other students to copy your answers. Anyone caught cheating will face disciplinary action.
Nondiscrimination Policy:
SDSU complies with the requirements of Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as
other applicable federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination. No person shall, on the basis of race,
color, or national origin be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be otherwise
subjected to discrimination in any program of the California State University.
SDSU does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender, or sexual orientation in the educational programs
or activities it conducts.
SDSU does not discriminate on the basis of disability in admission or access to, or treatment or
employment in, its programs and activities. Students should direct inquiries concerning SDSU’s
compliance with all relevant disability laws to the Director of Student Disability Services (SDS), Calpulli
Center, Suite 3101, or call 619-594-6473 (TDD: 619-594-2929).
More details on SDSU’s Nondiscrimination Policy can be found in the SDSU General Catalog,
University Policies.
Students with Disabilities:
Students with disabilities should discuss with me privately any specific accommodations for which they
have received authorization. Authorization may be obtained by contacting Student Disability Services at
619-594-6473 (Calpulli Center, Suite 3101; TDD: 619-594-2929). Please obtain authorization before
making an appointment to see me. More information can be found at http://www.sa.sdsu.edu/sds/.
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Course Outline for PH 602
Topic
Chapters in Rosner
Review of basic concepts of probability
Applications of Bayes’ rule
3.1 – 3.6
3.7
Probability distributions
Discrete
Basic ideas
Review of the binomial distribution
Continuous
Basic ideas
Review of the normal distribution
Normal approximation to binomial
Review of populations and samples
Review of random sampling
Sampling distribution
Estimation: Point and interval
Week *
1
1
5.1, 5.2
5.3, 5.4, 5.5
5.7
2
2
2
2
2
2
2, 3
3
6.1, 6.2
6.3
6.5
6.5, 6.7, 6.8
3
3
3
3, 4
4.1 – 4.7
4.8, 4.9
Hypothesis testing
4
Review of basic concepts
7.1, 7.2
4
One-sample problem
7.3 – 7.7, 7.10
4, 6
Two-sample problem
8.1 – 8.7, 8.10
6, 7
Nonparametric statistics
9.1, 9.3, 9.4
7
Hypothesis tests for categorical data
10.1, 10.2, 10.4 – 10.6, 13.3, 13.6
8, 9
Simple linear regression
11.1 – 11.5
11
Correlation
11.7, 11.8
11, 12
Analysis of variance
12.1 – 12.4
12
ANCOVA, 2-way ANOVA
12.6-12.8
13
* Week of the semester (see next page). Timeline is approximate and subject to change.
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Course Outline for PH 602
Week
1
Date
Aug 28
Topics
Basic probability concepts, conditional probability, relative risk,
screening tests
2
Sept 4
Discrete random variables, binomial distribution, hypothesis testing
preview (p-value), continuous random variables, properties of all
random variables, normal distribution
3
Sept 11
Normal distribution (cont.), populations and random samples,
estimating the mean of a distribution
4
Sept 18
Estimating the variance of a distribution, estimating a binomial
proportion, review of hypothesis testing concepts, one-sample z test,
one-sample t test [Homework assigned]
5
Sept 25
Exam I
6
Oct 2
One-sample t test (cont.), one-sample test for binomial proportion,
paired- versus independent-sample designs, paired t test, two-sample
t test [Homework due]
7
Oct 9
Two-sample t test (cont.), intro to nonparametric tests, Wilcoxon
signed-rank test, Wilcoxon rank-sum test
8
Oct 16
Chi-square test for 2x2 contingency table, odds ratio for 2x2
contingency table, confidence interval for odds ratio
9
Oct 23
Mantel-Haenszel test for 2x2 contingency tables, chi-square test for
RxC contingency table, McNemar’s test for paired samples
10
Oct 30
Exam II
11
Nov 6
Simple linear regression, correlation
12
Nov 13
Correlation (cont.), overall F test for one-way ANOVA, post-hoc
testing (multiple comparisons)
13
Nov 20
ANCOVA, 2-way ANOVA
14
Nov 27
No class
15
Dec 4
Final Exam Part 1
16
Dec 11
Final Exam Part 2
* Timeline is approximate and subject to change.
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ASPH Core Competencies in Biostatistics* and Methods of Evaluation
Competency
(Upon graduation a student with an MPH should be able to…)
Evaluation
Describe the roles biostatistics serves in the discipline of public health.
Homework
Describe basic concepts of probability, random variation and
commonly used statistical probability distributions.
Exam I
Describe preferred methodological alternatives to commonly used
statistical methods when assumptions are not met.
Exam II
Final
Distinguish among the different measurement scales and the
implications for selection of statistical methods to be used based on
these distinctions.
Apply descriptive techniques commonly used to summarize public
health data.
Exam II
Final
Apply common statistical methods for inference.
Exam I
Exam II
Final
Exam II
Final
Apply descriptive and inferential methodologies according to the type
of study design for answering a particular research question.
Exam II
Final
Apply basic informatics techniques with vital statistics and public
health records in the description of public health characteristics and in
public health research and evaluation.
Interpret results of statistical analyses found in public health studies.
Homework
Exam II
Final
* Source: http://www.asph.org/document.cfm?page=703, retrieved August 13, 2012.
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