Announcing the special August joint meeting of the WA Branch of the Statistical Society of Australia and the Australasian Region of the International Biometric Society.

Date: Tuesday, 9 August 2022
Time: 6:00PM
Location: Room 219, Building 300 (Life Sciences), Curtin University, Bentley; and via Zoom.

Please RSVP for dinner afterwards by contacting Mario D'Antuono (mario24freo@gmail.com, 0480 123 071) by 12noon, Monday, 8 August 2022.

Presentation

Non-parametric and semi-parametric models for analysing longitudinal data

Dr Kefei Chen, SAGI West, Centre for Crop Disease Management (CCDM)

General linear mixed effect models are the standard workhorse for statistical analysis of longitudinal data. However, analysis of longitudinal data can be complicated for reasons such as difficulties in modelling correlated outcome values, time-varying covariates, nonlinear and non-stationary effects. Nonparametric and semiparametric statistical approaches have been proposed to take advantage of their flexibility and making less assumptions, in particular for longitudinal data with temporal uncertainty, and unknown complex relationship between outcomes and covariates. I will present a comparative study on full parametric linear/nonlinear mixed modelling, nonparametric methods with Bayesian additive Gaussian process modelling (AGPM) and semiparametric methods with (shape constrained) generalised additive mixed modelling (GAMM, SCAM) in the analysis of longitudinal data in agricultural research. The nonparametric and semiparametric statistical approaches offer a good balance of flexibility and interpretability along with improved performance and accuracy.

About the Speaker

Kefei is currently working at SAGI West (Statistics for the Australian Grains Industry) in Curtin University as a Biometrician/Research Fellow. He completed his PhD degree in Genetics and Genomics from the University of Göttingen in Germany, and Master’s degree in Biostatistics from the University of Adelaide. From 2015 to 2017, he worked as a Biometrician at the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) on building yield prediction system. Since he joined SAGI West in 2017, he has provided statistical support and experimental designs for various projects in crop genetics and breeding including linear mixed model, factor analytic model, multi-environment trial analysis, nonparametric and semiparametric models, association mapping, genomic selection, and multi-omics analysis. His research interest has centred on using advanced statistical and data science technologies to enhance the understanding of biological mechanisms and dissecting the genetic basis of complex traits with the synergy of the high-performance computing, high throughput omics approaches, and high dimensional phenotyping data.

Refreshments and Dinner

Members, visitors, and guests are invited to mingle over wine and cheese from 5:30PM.

Following the meeting you are invited to dine with the speaker and fellow attendees at 7:30PM sharp at The Karalee on Preston (25 Preston Street, Como).

NB: RSVP to Mario D'Antuono (mario24freo@gmail.com, 0480 123 071) by 12noon, Monday, 8 August 2022.

The evening will include a complimentary first drink and coffee/tea/cake dessert on behalf of the two societies. Please come prepared with sufficient cash to cover your meal.

Meeting directions

Room 300.219 is located on the second floor of the Life Sciences Building (Building 300) which is situated adjacent to the Curtin Bus Station on Hayman Road, Bentley. Access the venue via the flight of glass-enclosed stairs located at the southern end of the building. See: MazeMap, Google Maps.

Parking is free on the Curtin Bentley campus after 4:30PM. A convenient place to park is Carpark PG1 (Yellow) accessible from Brand Drive. See: MazeMap.

Remote Viewing Option

For those that cannot attend in-person, the presentation will be streamed live over Zoom. Please register to get the connection details.

For further information please contact the WA Branch Secretary (ssa.wa.secretary@gmail.com).