Directed Research in Biology

  1. Data Analysis and Interpretation
    1. Preparing Data for Analysis
      1. Data Cleaning and Formatting
        1. Removing Outliers
          1. Outlier Detection Methods
            1. Outlier Treatment Options
              1. Documentation Requirements
              2. Standardizing Data Formats
                1. Consistent Units
                  1. Decimal Places
                    1. Missing Value Codes
                  2. Handling Missing Data
                    1. Imputation Methods
                      1. Mean Imputation
                        1. Regression Imputation
                          1. Multiple Imputation
                          2. Reporting Missing Data
                            1. Missing Data Patterns
                              1. Impact Assessment
                                1. Transparency Requirements
                              2. Organizing Data in Spreadsheets
                                1. Structuring Data Tables
                                  1. Row and Column Organization
                                    1. Variable Naming
                                      1. Data Entry Standards
                                      2. Using Formulas and Functions
                                        1. Basic Calculations
                                          1. Statistical Functions
                                            1. Data Validation
                                        2. Descriptive Statistics
                                          1. Measures of Central Tendency
                                            1. Mean
                                              1. Arithmetic Mean
                                                1. Geometric Mean
                                                  1. Harmonic Mean
                                                  2. Median
                                                    1. Calculation Methods
                                                      1. Robustness Properties
                                                        1. Appropriate Applications
                                                        2. Mode
                                                          1. Unimodal Distributions
                                                            1. Multimodal Distributions
                                                              1. Categorical Data
                                                            2. Measures of Dispersion
                                                              1. Range
                                                                1. Simple Range
                                                                  1. Interquartile Range
                                                                    1. Percentile Ranges
                                                                    2. Variance
                                                                      1. Population Variance
                                                                        1. Sample Variance
                                                                          1. Interpretation
                                                                          2. Standard Deviation
                                                                            1. Calculation Methods
                                                                              1. Interpretation
                                                                                1. Coefficient of Variation
                                                                                2. Standard Error of the Mean
                                                                                  1. Calculation
                                                                                    1. Confidence Intervals
                                                                                      1. Sample Size Effects
                                                                                    2. Data Distribution and Normality
                                                                                      1. Normal Distribution Properties
                                                                                        1. Normality Testing
                                                                                          1. Non-Normal Distributions
                                                                                        2. Inferential Statistics
                                                                                          1. Understanding Statistical Significance
                                                                                            1. Type I and Type II Errors
                                                                                              1. Alpha Levels
                                                                                                1. Statistical Power
                                                                                                2. P-values and Confidence Intervals
                                                                                                  1. P-value Interpretation
                                                                                                    1. Confidence Interval Construction
                                                                                                      1. Relationship Between P-values and Confidence Intervals
                                                                                                      2. Choosing the Appropriate Statistical Test
                                                                                                        1. Parametric vs Nonparametric Tests
                                                                                                          1. Assumptions Comparison
                                                                                                            1. Power Considerations
                                                                                                              1. Robustness Properties
                                                                                                              2. Assumptions of Statistical Tests
                                                                                                                1. Normality Assumptions
                                                                                                                  1. Independence Assumptions
                                                                                                                    1. Homogeneity of Variance
                                                                                                                2. Common Statistical Tests in Biology
                                                                                                                  1. T-tests
                                                                                                                    1. Student's T-test
                                                                                                                      1. One-Sample T-test
                                                                                                                        1. Two-Sample T-test
                                                                                                                          1. Assumptions and Limitations
                                                                                                                          2. Paired T-test
                                                                                                                            1. Before-After Comparisons
                                                                                                                              1. Matched Pairs Design
                                                                                                                                1. Assumption Checking
                                                                                                                              2. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
                                                                                                                                1. One-way ANOVA
                                                                                                                                  1. Between-Group Comparisons
                                                                                                                                    1. Post-hoc Tests
                                                                                                                                      1. Effect Size Measures
                                                                                                                                      2. Two-way ANOVA
                                                                                                                                        1. Main Effects
                                                                                                                                          1. Interaction Effects
                                                                                                                                            1. Factorial Designs
                                                                                                                                          2. Chi-Square Test
                                                                                                                                            1. Goodness of Fit Test
                                                                                                                                              1. Test of Independence
                                                                                                                                                1. Expected Frequency Requirements
                                                                                                                                                2. Correlation Analysis
                                                                                                                                                  1. Pearson Correlation
                                                                                                                                                    1. Linear Relationships
                                                                                                                                                      1. Assumptions
                                                                                                                                                        1. Interpretation
                                                                                                                                                        2. Spearman Correlation
                                                                                                                                                          1. Rank-Based Correlation
                                                                                                                                                            1. Non-Linear Relationships
                                                                                                                                                              1. Robustness Properties
                                                                                                                                                            2. Linear Regression
                                                                                                                                                              1. Simple Linear Regression
                                                                                                                                                                1. Model Fitting
                                                                                                                                                                  1. Assumption Checking
                                                                                                                                                                    1. Prediction
                                                                                                                                                                    2. Multiple Regression
                                                                                                                                                                      1. Multiple Predictors
                                                                                                                                                                        1. Model Selection
                                                                                                                                                                          1. Multicollinearity
                                                                                                                                                                      2. Data Visualization
                                                                                                                                                                        1. Principles of Effective Graphing
                                                                                                                                                                          1. Clarity and Simplicity
                                                                                                                                                                            1. Visual Clarity
                                                                                                                                                                              1. Avoiding Clutter
                                                                                                                                                                                1. Appropriate Scaling
                                                                                                                                                                                2. Labeling Axes and Legends
                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Descriptive Labels
                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Units of Measurement
                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Legend Placement
                                                                                                                                                                                    2. Creating Figures and Tables
                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Formatting for Publication
                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Journal Requirements
                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Resolution Standards
                                                                                                                                                                                            1. File Formats
                                                                                                                                                                                            2. Caption Writing
                                                                                                                                                                                              1. Descriptive Captions
                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Statistical Information
                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Abbreviation Definitions
                                                                                                                                                                                                2. Common Graph Types
                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Bar Charts
                                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Categorical Data Display
                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Error Bar Inclusion
                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Comparison Facilitation
                                                                                                                                                                                                        2. Line Graphs
                                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Continuous Data Display
                                                                                                                                                                                                            1. Trend Visualization
                                                                                                                                                                                                              1. Multiple Series
                                                                                                                                                                                                              2. Scatter Plots
                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Relationship Visualization
                                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Correlation Display
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Outlier Identification
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    2. Box Plots
                                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Distribution Summary
                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Outlier Display
                                                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Group Comparisons
                                                                                                                                                                                                                          2. Histograms
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            1. Frequency Distributions
                                                                                                                                                                                                                              1. Bin Selection
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Normality Assessment
                                                                                                                                                                                                                              2. Using Statistical Software for Visualization
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Microsoft Excel
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Basic Graphing
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Chart Customization
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Data Analysis Tools
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      2. R
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. ggplot2 Package
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Base Graphics
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            1. Statistical Plotting
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            2. Python (Matplotlib, Seaborn)
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              1. Matplotlib Basics
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Seaborn Statistical Plots
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Customization Options
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  2. GraphPad Prism
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Scientific Graphing
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Statistical Analysis
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Publication Quality
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    2. Interpreting Results
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Relating Statistical Findings to Biological Hypotheses
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Statistical vs Biological Significance
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Effect Size Interpretation
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            1. Practical Implications
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            2. Distinguishing Statistical vs Biological Significance
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              1. P-value Limitations
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Effect Size Importance
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Clinical Significance
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  2. Acknowledging Study Limitations
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Sources of Error
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Systematic Errors
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Random Errors
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Measurement Errors
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          2. Generalizability
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            1. Population Representativeness
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              1. External Validity
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Scope of Conclusions
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              2. Formulating Conclusions
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1. Evidence-Based Conclusions
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  1. Hypothesis Support
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    1. Alternative Explanations
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    2. Suggesting Future Research Directions
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      1. Unanswered Questions
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1. Methodological Improvements
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          1. Extended Applications

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Previous

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      3. Conducting the Research

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Go to top

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Next

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      5. Scientific Communication