Applied Statistics - Andrew Thomas 

 This week’s Applied Statistics Workshop presentation will be given by Andrew Thomas of the Harvard Statistics Department.  Drew’s talk, entitled “  A Comparison of Strategies in Ice Hockey ,? considers the choices facing players and coaches during the course of a game.  Should they prioritize possession of the puck, or its location on the rink?  The paper presents a model that divides the play of the game into different states in order to estimate the probability of scoring or allowing goals conditional on a given starting state.  

 Drew is currently a second-year Ph.D. candidate in the Statistics Department, having graduated from MIT in 2004 with a degree in Physics.  He has presented his work at the Joint Statistical Meetings and the New England Statistical Symposium.  He was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, which may have something to do with his interest in hockey.  And, most importantly, he is a fellow blogger on the Social Science Statistics blog.  The presentation will be at noon on Wednesday, October 5 (coincidentally enough, opening night for the  NHL ) in Room N354, CGIS North, 1737 Cambridge St. Lunch will be provided.