New Zealand Statistical Association Newsletter 60
September 2004
Editorial - Roger Littlejohn
I
have just updated the events diary (on pages 12-13) and am in a state of
severe pre-conference burn out. This is the year that statistics comes ‘down under’, and the intensity of the
planned activities, not to mention those recently completed, is quite
staggering. There are 18 meetings listed, 8 of which are in New Zealand,
while 3 overseas conferences have websites hosted in New Zealand, a
tribute to the leadership of Kiwis in the international community.
A quick look at the list of invited speakers to the ISI Satellites in NZ shows that we will be hosting a veritable ‘Who’s Who?’ of statisticians. It promises to be an exciting, stimulating and demanding time. Let us hope that as a statistical community we can capture the value offered by such a ‘visitation’.
I particularly want to draw your attention to next year’s NZSA 3-Day Conference, to be held in Dunedin next July. It promises to be a beaut, although not too many details are available yet. With all the intervening activity, I suggest you make sure now that you have the time, energy and funds to attend.
This year’s NZSA Conference in Wellington had a special charm, from the Vice-Chancellor’s notably well-connected introduction (in another life he consulted with statisticians) to dinner at the Skyline.
I also attended IBC/ASC in (tropical) Cairns, which although attended by 750 people, did not overwhelm. For me the highlight was Steve Feinberg’s use of a simple unqualified 2x2 table that convinced a US Senator, if not the Department of Energy, that ‘lie detectors’ were a poor option.
What more can I say? Take a deep breath, plan thoroughly, be selective, and (as they say) enjoy!
Roger Littlejohn
Roger
NZSA Web Site
The NZSA website is now hosted by the Royal Society of New Zealand at http://nzsa.rsnz.org/index.shtml. The new webmaster is Roger Littlejohn (roger.littlejohn@agresearch.co.nz), who takes over from David Scott. Roger has been working on updating the site, but there is still a lot to do and the upgrade is unlikely to be implemented before this newsletter goes out.
12/10/2004NZSA Membership Secretary, Harold Henderson, reports that membership of the NZSA has topped 400 for the first time as several new members have joined since the September newsletter was released.
This keeps us in proportion with the population of New Zealand, which recently topped 4 million. While the NZSA has no plans to provide a "Pop Clock" of membership, to get the best current estimate we suggest you go to the Statistics New Zealand "Pop Clock" and divide by 10,000.
New members
A
warm welcome to new members of the NZSA. There are 20 new members who attended
the NZSA Conference in Wellington, who were not members prior to attending (well
done John Haywood!). Of the 45 new members since March, 15 are students who
receive their first year’s membership free:
Joe Helu, Derek Christie, Yong Wang, In Kang, Kwaku Damoah,
Eldon Paki, Zhaojing Gong, Marian Loader, Susan Kim, Jane Hay, Vanessa Cave,
Nigel Guenole, Charlotte Kieft, Lisa Teague,
Colin Jeffcoat, Jingwei Wang, Jilin Jia, Mieke Wensvoort,
Leni Hunter, Kevin Stokes, Satish Iyengar, Laurie Fleming,
Claire Harkess, Ramzan Afzal, Alan Wan, Claire Jordan, Irene Zeng, Ray Lin, Jin
Seo Cho, Carl Scarrott, Marie Fitch, Mark Maunder,
Dean Minot, Ramya Suntheralingam, Hiu Tung Cheung,
Anna-Marie Martin, Vicki Livingstone, Lisa Corscadden,
Roseanne Sovka, Ozer Karagedikli, Laimonis Kavalieris,
Padmaja Ramankutty, Hadley Wickham, Caroline Roughneen,
Michael Slyuzberg
To join the NZSA, visit http://nzsa.rsnz.org/form.php.
The Newsletter welcomes any submissions of interest to members of the New Zealand Statistical Association. News about New Zealand statisticians, statistical meetings, statistical organisations, statistics in education, or statistical curiosities are suitable for inclusion. Letters that raise issues of importance to statistics in New Zealand are also welcomed. Photographs of recent gatherings and new appointees are of particular interest. Electronic submissions are preferred and you may use this link.
Next deadline 11 February 2005.
Advertising In the Newsletter
The Newsletter accepts advertising of interest to statisticians in New Zealand. Advertising is placed subject to space considerations. Personal advertising by NZSA members will be published free. Other advertising is $250 per page, $140 per half page, and $75 per quarter page. Other sizes can be quoted on request. All advertising requests should be directed to the editor.
Editor
Roger Littlejohn
AgResearch Invermay
Private Bag 50034, Mosgiel, New Zealand
Phone: 03 489 9082; Fax: 03 489 9037
Email:
Roger.Littlejohn@AgResearch.co.nz
