Organizing Information

Annual Review Article User Guide

• For Wednesday: Submit a topic idea for your user guide

  • Focus on practical implementation
  • Show how to use some software or technique

• Written for a peer at a business who is not necessarily a statistician but is technologically competent (you can assume knowledge of basic R/python)

• Example: Conducting visual inference studies using the nullabor package

Organizing Information

• Anyone remember this from elementary school?

Removing the Training Wheels

• Thesis developed in parallel with the body of the essay

• Feedback loop:

  • initial thesis -> draft of the body
  • discoveries while drafting the body -> update thesis
  • updated thesis -> reshape the body

Removing the Training Wheels

• Continual refining of ideas until
  • you’re happy
    (OR)
  • the due date arrives

Statistical Writing

Main types of statistical writing (in my experience):

• Experiment write-up

• White paper/Technical report

  • Use a statistical analysis to make a point

• Tutorial

• Literature review

Organizing Information

• Make a list of the main points

• Make lists of supporting information for each main point

• Move them around (Post its!) to see if you can find natural transitions

  • time
  • connecting pieces of information
  • logical flow

Organizing Information

• If things don’t logically connect
  • are you missing critical pieces to connect concepts? -> More research
  • are you trying to do too much? -> Narrow topic/thesis

Activity

Build the document using the puzzle pieces I’ve given you.

Can you make them logically connect?

What features are you using to connect each piece?

Wire Cuts, Paragraph by Paragraph