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Welcome to the website!

About the learning group

The Bayesian Learning Group is an informal learning community organized by the University of Arizona CCT Data Science team. The initial series of the BLG was offered in Spring 2024 by Jessica Guo and Renata Diaz. We are now continuing into Summer 2024!

Group objectives

  • Become experts in Bayesian statistics! Or, at least, absorb the philosophy and conceptual underpinnings of a Bayesian approach, and learn to build and interpret Bayesian models using modern software packages (mostly brms).

  • Support each other in this quest. Collectively we have a diversity of research interests, backgrounds in statistics and programming, and objectives for the semester. We will share our knowledge and our curiosity, and we will welcome questions, experiments, and intellectual risk-taking. We will collectively commit to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all (see the Code of Conduct, below).

Learning group structure

  • The learning group is somewhat of an experiment and evolves over time.

  • For summer 2024, sessions will focus on working through examples from Richard McElreath’s Statistical Rethinking using brms. You are encouraged to read the corresponding chapters and/or watch the accompanying video lectures in between sessions, but we will try to provide enough background context to make working through the examples a valuable exercise on its own.

  • We will be starting from Chapter 9 (MCMC). Some background in statistics is helpful, but interest is more important! You do not need to have participated in the spring series, or to have attended previous sessions, to join any session throughout the semester.

  • We also welcome model “show-and-tell” (where volunteers talk us through all of the nerdy model details you usually don’t get to talk about in your papers and talks!) and guest speakers throughout the semester.

Code of Conduct

Our group’s mission is to enable scientists. This means treating people with respect and responding in a polite and helpful way.

Our group is committed to ensuring a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of level of experience, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, personal appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, age, or religion.

Examples of unacceptable behavior by members, collaborators, and contributors include the use of sexual language or imagery, derogatory comments or personal attacks, trolling, public or private harassment, insults, or other unprofessional conduct.

Read our full code of conduct and please report any violations or concerns to the course instructors or to Kristina Riemer (kristinariemer@arizona.edu).

Questions?

Contact Renata Diaz at renatadiaz@arizona.edu.