Applied Statistics Commons^™

Asl Reverse Dictionary - Asl Translation Using Deep Learning, Ann Nelson, Kj Price, Rosalie Multari

SMU Data Science Review

The challenges of learning a new language can be reduced with real-time feedback on pronunciation and language usage. Today there are readily available technologies which provide such feedback on spoken languages, by translating the voice of the learner into written text. For someone seeking to learn American Sign Language (ASL), there is however no such feedback application available. A learner of American Sign Language might reference websites or books to obtain an image of a hand sign for a word. This process is like looking up a word in a dictionary, and if the person wanted to know if they …

Leveraging Reviews To Improve User Experience, Anthony Schams, Iram Bakhtiar, Cristina Stanley

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we will explore and present a method of finding characteristics of a restaurant using its reviews through machine learning algorithms. We begin by building models to predict the ratings of individual reviews using text and categorical features. This is to examine the efficacy of the algorithms to the task. Both XGBoost and logistic regression will be examined. With these models, our goal is then to identify key phrases in reviews that are correlated with positive and negative experience. Our analysis makes use of review data publicly made available by Yelp. Key bigrams extracted were non-specific to the …

Visualization And Machine Learning Techniques For Nasa’S Em-1 Big Data Problem, Antonio P. Garza Iii, Jose Quinonez, Misael Santana, Nibhrat Lohia

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we help NASA solve three Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1) challenges: data storage, computation time, and visualization of complex data. NASA is studying one year of trajectory data to determine available launch opportunities (about 90TBs of data). We improve data storage by introducing a cloud-based solution that provides elasticity and server upgrades. This migration will save $120k in infrastructure costs every four years, and potentially avoid schedule slips. Additionally, it increases computational efficiency by 125%. We further enhance computation via machine learning techniques that use the classic orbital elements to predict valid trajectories. Our machine learning model decreases trajectory …

Machine Learning Pipeline For Exoplanet Classification, George Clayton Sturrock, Brychan Manry, Sohail Rafiqi

SMU Data Science Review

Planet identification has typically been a tasked performed exclusively by teams of astronomers and astrophysicists using methods and tools accessible only to those with years of academic education and training. NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration program has introduced modern satellites capable of capturing a vast array of data regarding celestial objects of interest to assist with researching these objects. The availability of satellite data has opened up the task of planet identification to individuals capable of writing and interpreting machine learning models. In this study, several classification models and datasets are utilized to assign a probability of an observation being an exoplanet. …

Tidying And Analysis Of The 2014 Texas English Ii End-Of-Course Exam, David Churchman, Abigail Morton Garland

SMU Data Science Review

The state of Texas requires all public high school students to take End of Course (EOC) exams. The results of these exams are made nominally public, but in a shape and format that precludes ready analysis. To the extent possible, principles of tidy data will be applied to clean and analyze the publicly released data file for the 2014 English II EOC exam, providing insights into the EOC program and a case for better public data from the Texas Education Administration (TEA).

Pedestrian Safety -- Fundamental To A Walkable City, Joshua Herrera, Patrick Mcdevitt, Preeti Swaminathan, Raghuram Srinivas

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we present a method to identify urban areas with a higher likelihood of pedestrian safety related events. Pedestrian safety related events are pedestrian-vehicle interactions that result in fatalities, injuries, accidents without injury, or near--misses between pedestrians and vehicles. To develop a solution to this problem of identifying likely event locations, we assemble data, primarily from the City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, that include safety reports from a five year period, geographic information for these events, citizen survey of pedestrian reported concerns, non-emergency requests for service for any cause in the city, property values and public transportation …

Improving Vix Futures Forecasts Using Machine Learning Methods, James Hosker, Slobodan Djurdjevic, Hieu Nguyen, Robert Slater

SMU Data Science Review

The problem of forecasting market volatility is a difficult task for most fund managers. Volatility forecasts are used for risk management, alpha (risk) trading, and the reduction of trading friction. Improving the forecasts of future market volatility assists fund managers in adding or reducing risk in their portfolios as well as in increasing hedges to protect their portfolios in anticipation of a market sell-off event. Our analysis compares three existing financial models that forecast future market volatility using the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index (VIX) to six machine/deep learning supervised regression methods. This analysis determines which models provide best …

Modeling Stochastically Intransitive Relationships In Paired Comparison Data, Ryan Patrick Alexander Mcshane

Statistical Science Theses and Dissertations

If the Warriors beat the Rockets and the Rockets beat the Spurs, does that mean that the Warriors are better than the Spurs? Sophisticated fans would argue that the Warriors are better by the transitive property, but could Spurs fans make a legitimate argument that their team is better despite this chain of evidence?

We first explore the nature of intransitive (rock-scissors-paper) relationships with a graph theoretic approach to the method of paired comparisons framework popularized by Kendall and Smith (1940). Then, we focus on the setting where all pairs of items, teams, players, or objects have been compared to …

Random Forest Vs Logistic Regression: Binary Classification For Heterogeneous Datasets, Kaitlin Kirasich, Trace Smith, Bivin Sadler

SMU Data Science Review

Selecting a learning algorithm to implement for a particular application on the basis of performance still remains an ad-hoc process using fundamental benchmarks such as evaluating a classifier’s overall loss function and misclassification metrics. In this paper we address the difficulty of model selection by evaluating the overall classification performance between random forest and logistic regression for datasets comprised of various underlying structures: (1) increasing the variance in the explanatory and noise variables, (2) increasing the number of noise variables, (3) increasing the number of explanatory variables, (4) increasing the number of observations. We developed a model evaluation tool capable …

Predicting National Basketball Association Success: A Machine Learning Approach, Adarsh Kannan, Brian Kolovich, Brandon Lawrence, Sohail Rafiqi

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we present a machine learning based approach to projecting the success of National Basketball Association (NBA) draft prospects. With the proliferation of data, analytics have increasingly be- come a critical component in the assessment of professional and collegiate basketball players. We leverage player biometric data, college statistics, draft selection order, and positional breakdown as modelling features in our prediction algorithms. We found that a player's draft pick and their college statistics are the best predictors of their longevity in the National Basketball Association.

Yelp’S Review Filtering Algorithm, Yao Yao, Ivelin Angelov, Jack Rasmus-Vorrath, Mooyoung Lee, Daniel W. Engels

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we present an analysis of features influencing Yelp's proprietary review filtering algorithm. Classifying or misclassifying reviews as recommended or non-recommended affects average ratings, consumer decisions, and ultimately, business revenue. Our analysis involves systematically sampling and scraping Yelp restaurant reviews. Features are extracted from review metadata and engineered from metrics and scores generated using text classifiers and sentiment analysis. The coefficients of a multivariate logistic regression model were interpreted as quantifications of the relative importance of features in classifying reviews as recommended or non-recommended. The model classified review recommendations with an accuracy of 78%. We found that reviews …

Cryptocurrency Price Prediction Using Tweet Volumes And Sentiment Analysis, Jethin Abraham, Daniel Higdon, John Nelson, Juan Ibarra

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we present a method for predicting changes in Bitcoin and Ethereum prices utilizing Twitter data and Google Trends data. Bitcoin and Ethereum, the two largest cryptocurrencies in terms of market capitalization represent over \$160 billion dollars in combined value. However, both Bitcoin and Ethereum have experienced significant price swings on both daily and long term valuations. Twitter is increasingly used as a news source influencing purchase decisions by informing users of the currency and its increasing popularity. As a result, quickly understanding the impact of tweets on price direction can provide a purchasing and selling advantage to …

Goalie Analytics: Statistical Evaluation Of Context-Specific Goalie Performance Measures In The National Hockey League, Marc Naples, Logan Gage, Amy Nussbaum

SMU Data Science Review

In this paper, we attempt to improve upon the classic formulation of save percentage in the NHL by controlling the context of the shots and use alternative measures than save percentage. In particular, we find save percentage to be both a weakly repeatable skill and predictor of future performance, and we seek other goalie performance calculations that are more robust. To do so, we use three primary tests to test intra-season consistency, intra-season predictability, and inter-season consistency, and extend the analysis to disentangle team effects on goalie statistics. We find that there are multiple ways to improve upon classic save …

Data Scientist’S Analysis Toolbox: Comparison Of Python, R, And Sas Performance, Jim Brittain, Mariana Cendon, Jennifer Nizzi, John Pleis

SMU Data Science Review

A quantitative analysis will be performed on experiments utilizing three different tools used for Data Science. The analysis will include replication of analysis along with comparisons of code length, output, and results. Qualitative data will supplement the quantitative findings. The conclusion will provide data support guidance on the correct tool to use for common situations in the field of Data Science.

Cognitive Virtual Admissions Counselor, Kumar Raja Guvindan Raju, Cory Adams, Raghuram Srinivas

SMU Data Science Review

Abstract. In this paper, we present a cognitive virtual admissions counselor for the Master of Science in Data Science program at Southern Methodist University. The virtual admissions counselor is a system capable of providing potential students accurate information at the time that they want to know it. After the evaluation of multiple technologies, Amazon’s LEX was selected to serve as the core technology for the virtual counselor chatbot. Student surveys were leveraged to collect and generate training data to deploy the natural language capability. The cognitive virtual admissions counselor platform is currently capable of providing an end-to-end conversational dialog to …

Developing Statistical Methods For Data From Platforms Measuring Gene Expression, Gaoxiang Jia

Statistical Science Theses and Dissertations

This research contains two topics: (1) PBNPA: a permutation-based non-parametric analysis of CRISPR screen data; (2) RCRnorm: an integrated system of random-coefficient hierarchical regression models for normalizing NanoString nCounter data from FFPE samples.

Clustered regularly-interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) screens are usually implemented in cultured cells to identify genes with critical functions. Although several methods have been developed or adapted to analyze CRISPR screening data, no single spe- cific algorithm has gained popularity. Thus, rigorous procedures are needed to overcome the shortcomings of existing algorithms. We developed a Permutation-Based Non-Parametric Analysis (PBNPA) algorithm, which computes p-values at the gene level …