ABS15 - 2015 Applied Bayesian Statistics School

MODERN BAYESIAN METHODS AND COMPUTING FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Villa del Grumello, Como, Italy

June, 8-12, 2015





Grumello


News
Seminar Announcement
(click on the title to download the leaflet)

Lake Como School of Advanced Studies, Dipartimento di Scienze Statistiche - Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore,  CNR-IMATI
Villa del Grumello, Como  

Tuesday, June 9th, h 17.30
Prof. Jeff Gill will give the following seminar
"To be Bayesian, or not to be: that is the question in the social sciences"





ABS SCHOOLS

The Applied Bayesian Statistics summer school has been running since 2004. From 2012 it is organized by

  • IMATI CNR
    Istituto di Matematica Applicata e Tecnologie Informatiche, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche
  • Dipartimento di Scienze Statistiche
    Università Cattolica, Milano 
    • Since 2014 the school is organized in cooperation with  Centro di Cultura Scientifica "Alessandro Volta"

    The school aims to present state-of-the-art Bayesian applications, inviting leading experts in their field. Each year a different topic is chosen. Past editions were devoted to Gene Expression Genomics, Decision Modelling in Health Care, Spatial Data in Environmental and Health Sciences, Bayesian Methods and Econometrics, Bayesian Decision Problems in Biostatistics and Clinical Trials, Bayesian Methodology for Clustering, Classification and Categorical Data Analysis, Bayesian Machine Learning with Biomedical Applications, Hierarchical Modeling for Environmental Processes, Stochastic Modelling for Systems Biology, Bayesian Methods for Variable Selection with Applications to High-Dimensional Data and Applied Bayesian Nonparametrics.

    TOPIC AND LECTURER

    The topic chosen for the 2015 school is Modern Bayesian Methods and Computing for the Social Sciences.  The lecturer is:

    Professor   Jeff Gill,  Professor of Political Science, Professor of Biostatistics, Professor of Surgery (Public Health Sciences), Washington University, St. Louis, MO, USA  

    COURSE DESCRIPTION

    This course covers the theoretical and applied foundations of Bayesian  statistical analysis with an emphasis on computational tools for Bayesian hierarchical models.  We will discuss model checking, model assessment,  and model comparison. The course will cover Bayesian stochastic simulation  (Markov chain Monte Carlo) in depth with an orientation towards deriving  important properties of the Gibbs sampler and the Metropolis Hastings  algorithm. Extensions and hybrids will be discussed. We will then use  Markov chain Monte Carlo tools to fit linear and nonlinear specifications with multiple levels, longitudinal features, and non-normal distributional assumptions.  Lectures will include theoretical discussions of modeling and estimation as well as practical guidance for fitting complex multilevel models with R and JAGS software. Applications will be drawn from political science,sociology, epidemiology, economic policy, and public administration. Participants are expected to understand linear regression in matrix algebra terminology, have some exposure to R, and  know basic statistical inference.



    LOCATION AND SCHEDULE

    The 2015 school will be held at Villa del Grumello, a magnificent villa located in the city of Como, along the Lake Como shoreline.

    Please note that the number of available places is limited.

    The school will start on Monday,  June,8th,  and it will end on Friday, June, 12st     .


    FEES

    The registration fees (for payments before April, 1th, 2015) are:

  • EUR 400 (22% VAT included) for students and postdocs
  • EUR 550 (450.82 + 22% VAT) for people from academic and non-profit organisations
  • EUR 900 (737.70 + 22% VAT) for all the others
    • including teaching materials, two lunches (9/6 and 11/6), social dinner (12/6) and coffee breaks.

    For late payments (after April, 1th, 2015) please add 60 euros (49.18 + 22% VAT).


    INFORMATION