Until recently, acquiring a background in the basic methodological principles that apply to most types of investigations meant struggling to obtain results through laborious calculations. The advent of statistical software packages has removed much of the tedium and many of the errors of manual calculations and allowed a marked increase in the depth and sophistication of analyses. Although most statistics classes now incorporate some instruction in using a statistics package, most introductory texts do not.

Quantitative Investigations in the Biosciences using MINITAB fills this void by providing an introduction to investigative methods that, in addition to outlining statistical principles and describing methods of calculations, also presents essential commands and interprets output from the statistics package MINITAB.

The author introduces the three basic elements of investigations-design, analysis, and reporting-using an extremely accessible approach that keeps mathematical detail to a minimum. He groups statistical tests according to the type of problem they are used to examine, such as comparisons, sequential relationships, and associations.

Quantitative Investigations in the Biosciences using MINITAB draws techniques and examples from a variety of subjects, ranging from physiology and biochemistry through to ecology, behavioral sciences, medicine, agriculture and horticulture, and complements the mathematical results with formal conclusions for all of the worked examples. It thus provides an ideal handbook for anyone in virtually any field who wants to apply statistical techniques to their investigations.

Reviews

"This book takes the reader through the structured steps necessary for quantitative investigations. The text is suitable for those students with limited knowledge and ability with mathematics but who may, nonetheless, wish to use statistical techniques appropriately. ...Analyses are illustrated by full-worked examples and the author discusses the type of biological question to which each technique should be applied. The text will be a useful starting point for student of applied statistics who need to integrate their studies with Minitab."
- International Statistics Institute

"With 458 pages, this is a substantial work. As a handbook of statistical methods, it should appeal particularly to researchers and lectuers in ecology, and in the agricultural and medical sciences. It could also be a recommended text for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students.

"I found the book well organized, readable, and comprehensive...The need for careful justification of numbers in animal experiments is emphasized, so that defensible group sizes can be presented to ethical committees. This is one of the book's real strengths, along with the attention given to procedures for sampling.

... I was impressed with Eddison's balancing of algebra versus Minitab and his introductory survey of the statistics landscape without being overly technical. ...Overall, I would see this as a useful reference handbook for the advanced undergraduate and postgraduate, or professional biologist, who wants to use statistical methods in an insightful and responsible way, and with Minitab as the executive tool."
- Learning & Teaching Support Network

Book Information
ISBN 9781584880332
Author John Eddison
Format Paperback
Page Count 472
Imprint Chapman & Hall/CRC
Publisher Taylor & Francis Inc
Weight(grams) 860g