Another possibility

I thought of another idea for the independent project: Somehow analyzing the multitudes of data in the training logs that I maintain religiously. I'm not really sure how this would work, or even if it would since the data is not from an experiment per se. I guess I will have to wait until I have a better idea of the types of statistical analyses we will be learning about; before then I don't really know what I am talking about... But regardless, it's an interesting idea and I would definitely have fun with it. I have already spent plenty of time making graphs to chart progress, finding formulas online to predict performance, etc.; at times probably to the extreme where it's too much about the numbers and not enough about the experience! Overall though, I enjoy having a concrete reminder of what I have accomplished, preferably in a form that can be analyzed (i.e. numerical, not descriptive). So I think that learning some new and different ways of looking at data will be very useful to me in the future.

R and C++

I took a C++ programming course in high school and although I don't remember too many details from it, I think it will help me when learning how to use the program R. I've already noticed a number of similarities in the way you communicate with the computer and how it interprets commands: i.e. the logical operators (<=, !=) are the same, along with the comparison symbols (|, &). More of what I knew how to do four years ago is also coming back to me, like defining and working with variables. I also think that just the experience of having to convert my own thinking into a type of logic that the computer will understand will help me in working with R.

Independent Project

I'm planning on beginning my Honors Thesis this semester and it would be great if I could use the results from that for my independent project. Since I have never taken a statistics class before, how I am going to analyze that data is something I have been concerned about. This way I could kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. The only problem would be if I am not finished with data collection by the time I have to start the project for this class. Knowing how long the IRB can take to give approval to a study involving human subjects, it could be awhile until I can start.