Lifetime data occurs frequently in engineering, where it is known as reliability or failure time data, and in the biomedical sciences, where it is known as survival data. This course covers the basic methods for analyzing such data. Topics include: probability models for lifetime data, censoring, graphical methods of model selection and analysis, parametric and distribution-free inference, parametric and distribution-free regression methods. As time permits, additional topics such as frailty models and accelerated life models will be considered. Special emphasis will be placed on realistic applications of the theory using statistical computer packages.
Prerequisites
knowledge of basic probability and statistics at the level of MA 511 is assumed