/*** This is a non-synchronous online course taught in English. ***/

/*** No auditors will be allowed. ***/

在多數的生物統計課程中，老師時常介紹理論模式，繼而以統計軟體 (如SAS與R) 來分析資料。然而，在這兩個部分的中間卻存在著一個黑盒子。為能連接理論與軟體分析報表，本課程將介紹在統計模式中所牽涉的數值計算過程。同學將學習到矩陣運算、數值分析、蒙地卡羅模擬等。本課程涵蓋如何從統計分布來建構概似函數、求得羅吉斯迴歸與卜瓦松迴歸裡的最大概似估計值、求得精確信賴區間 (exact confidence interval)、以及如何為一個研究主題設計蒙地卡羅模擬等。

In most biostatistics courses, instructors usually introduce theoretical models and then analyze data with statistical software such as SAS and R. However, there is a black box between these two parts. To link statistical theory to software output, we will introduce the numerical computation process involved in statistical models. Students will learn matrix operations, numerical analyses, Monte Carlo simulations, etc. We will teach how to construct a log-likelihood function according to a statistical distribution, obtain maximum likelihood estimates from a logistic regression and a Poisson regression, find exact confidence intervals, design Monte Carlo simulations for a given research topic, etc.