The New South Wales Branch of the Statistical Society of Australia invites you to their Annual Event - the JB Douglas Award and Annual Lecture. The afternoon will begin with presentations from PhD students from across NSW as part of the JB Douglas Award, showcasing the depth, breadth and excellence of postgraduate research in statistics and related fields across the state, followed by the Annual Lecture by Dr Emi Tanaka, Australian National University (ANU). The Event will conclude with the Annual Dinner.
Date: Thursday 19 November 2026
Times (AEDT):
- 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm – JB Douglas Award presentations (with refreshment break)
- 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm - Refreshments and award presentation
- 5:30pm – 6:40 pm – Annual Lecture by Dr Emi Tanaka
- 7:00pm – Annual Dinner Separate registration required
Venue: Swissôtel, 68 Market St, Sydney
Format: In person
JB Douglas Award details will be provided soon.
Abstract: Shaping a Symbiotic Future for Statistics in the Age of AI: Culture, Practice, and Software Development
Artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as one of the most significant technological disruptors of contemporary society. It is transforming almost every aspect of our lives: how we generate and discuss ideas, gather and process information, write code and solve mathematical problems. Statistics, both as a discipline and as a profession, is no exception.
Statistical thinking is fundamental to rigorous data analysis and inference. It teaches us to think deeply about data, quantify uncertainty, and draw careful inferences. But its main strengths are also weaknesses in a fast-paced society that demands rapid results. In the grain industry, for example, utility is increasingly sought from complex data including high-dimensional hyperspectral measurements and image data for phenotyping. In this talk, I will demonstrate emerging analytics in the grains industry, such as computer vision models, and discuss how statistics can evolve alongside the growing adoption of AI.
Bio: Emi Tanaka, Australian National University
Emi Tanaka is an academic statistician at the Australian National University (ANU). Her work spans experimental design, mixed-effects models and data visualisation, alongside open-source software development and the use of AI in agricultural analytics and statistical workflows. She serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the R Journal, leads the ANU team for the Analytics for the Australian Grains Industry Project, and is an Elected Member of the International Statistical Institute.
@StatSocAus
