The Department of Biostatistics to host lecture in memory of the late David Wheeler, Ph.D.
The Department of Biostatistics in the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Public Health is honored to announce the inaugural Dr. David Wheeler Memorial Lecture in Spatial and Cancer Statistics, featuring renowned biostatistician Lance Waller, Ph.D.
This distinguished lecture series commemorates the legacy of David Wheeler, Ph.D, who served in the Department of Biostatistics for 13 years, beginning as an assistant professor in 2011 and rising to the rank of full professor in 2023. He was also a member of the Cancer Prevention and Control research program at VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. Wheeler passed away in June 2024 after a lengthy and courageous battle with brain cancer. A prolific researcher, his pioneering contributions in statistical methods have advanced spatial epidemiology and cancer research. Learn more about Dr. Wheeler here.
Lance Waller, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, is widely recognized for his expertise in spatial statistics, disease mapping, and environmental epidemiology. His research has significantly influenced the study of geographic patterns in disease distribution, particularly in cancer epidemiology. He is the co-author of Applied Spatial Statistics for Public Health Data, a foundational text in the field. Waller also served as Wheeler’s postdoctoral mentor, making his role as the inaugural speaker especially meaningful.
Waller’s talk, “Maps: A Statistical View”, will explore how the location of data points affects patterns and outcomes, using geography to enhance statistical methods like data visualization and model evaluation. This approach helps interpret data in fields like disease ecology by showing how maps provide important context for understanding both known and unknown information. See more in the abstract below.
Join us on Friday, April 4, in the Molecular Medicine Research Building room 1013 at 12 p.m. for the lecture. A reception will follow the talk at about 1:30 p.m.
Event details:
Friday, April 4, 12 – 1:30 p.m.
Molecular Medicine Research Building, Room 1013
1220 E Broad St, Richmond, VA
You can join the talk remotely by registering at this link.
Abstract: Spatial statistical analysis builds upon the premise that where something happens can influence what happens, i.e., the location of observations can provide information on the observations themselves. Location can be defined on geographic maps and in geometric space, but geography often involves information beyond simple location, distance, and direction. Here, we will explore how geography influences inference in spatial statistical analyses and offer geographic insights on familiar statistical constructs such as data visualization, asymptotics, classical and Bayesian inference, weighted estimation, model diagnostics, and compromises between design and modeling. We will discuss compromises between geographic and statistical precision, statistical precision and local and global probabilistic strategies for ensuring data confidentiality. Using historical and contemporary examples from disease ecology, we will illustrate how maps provide a critical context for data visualization and interpretation, ranging from the known (“You are here”) to the unknown (“Here be dragons”).
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