Personal Highlights — Andrew Schaffner
Somehow I had this idea in my head that with each additional year of experience, my work at Cal Poly was supposed to get easier and easier. I’m not sure where that misguided vision came from! This past year was one of the busiest for me: I continued serving as the Academic Senate Curriculum Committee Chair, partnered with Suzanne Phelan (KINE) as Co-investigator on two NIH grants, and taught what seems like several new courses as we transition from Minitab to JMP.
Some of you will be surprised to hear that my current research collaborations don’t focus on poop. This past year, and for the next five years at least, I will be helping Dr. Phelan with two NIH funded projects related to weight control and pregnancy. One study investigates the impacts of an internet-based behavioral weight control program for low-income postpartum mothers—think Facebook for new moms with a registered dietician and nurse mediating discussions and facilitating virtual support groups along with providing tools and games for tracking food intake and weight).
The second study will test the efficacy of a lifestyle modification program that incorporates meal replacements designed to prevent excessive gestational weight gain in obese women. It is thought that pregnancy is an especially “teachable moment” and that lifestyle changes, including diet, can have lasting effects beyond the pregnancy. We are hoping that as moms improve their eating habits, these changes may spill over to others in the household. Dr. Todd Hagobian in the Kinesiology Department and I just submitted a supplementary research proposal to NIH for funding to collect data to test this “spillover” hypothesis.
For those of you who are thinking I’ve lost my penchant for truly fascinating statistical collaborations, you’ll be happy to hear that this summer I will continue my consultation with the National Estuary Program’s fecal bacteria monitoring of the Morro Bay watershed. In addition, I am helping Dr. Perrine from the Biology Department assess the impacts of a new fencing project to prevent car/animal collisions along the Cuesta grade and will help Dr. Plummer from the Animal Science Department in a project to assess the impact of probiotic diets to reduce infections and improve semen quality in bulls. Thus, in summary, my current research involves obesity, poop, road kill, semen quality, and pregnancy.
Of course my most important duty and passion around here is teaching, and it’s been a fun year as we transition from Mintab to JMP in many of our courses. At first, I hated the JMP’s unique interface, but now I must say that JMP has become my go-to software for routine analyses. I am embarrassed to say this, but I use it more than R for day-to-day work.
But how is it in the classroom and especially for students learning introductory statistics? I think the jury is still out on that one. The interface protects students a lot by making decisions about what types of analyses are appropriate given the types of variables in the model and which variables are declared explanatory versus response. This protection robs students from making some choices (and mistakes) on their own. On the plus side, it is quick to provide students with basic summary graphs (always plot your data!) and output for interpretation, which is the focus of our introductory courses.
Regarding upper-division, I had the pleasure of teaching Applied Multivariate Statistics this spring and used JMP in the course. I hadn’t taught this class in 10 years(!), so it seemed like a ripe time to try a new textbook and software. I think I made the right choice regarding the software: JMP easily did most everything needed for the course, including matrix algebra using the scripting language. I guess an old dog can learn (and enjoy) some new tricks.
On a final and more personal note, I’ve really enjoyed staying connected with many former students via Facebook. It’s great to see what you’re up to — jobs, vacations, family. It makes me feel old watching you get married and have kids, but I really enjoy staying in touch. Best regards to all of you.
