ICAR-IASRI MSc and PhD (Agricultural Statistics, Computer Application, Bioinformatics) · India · ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute with the IARI Graduate School
Original practice questions written to the published syllabus · not past papersRunning real analyses in R, SAS, SPSS, Python and Genstat: importing and managing agricultural data, running designed-experiment, survey and genetics analyses, checking outputs, and making the work reproducible with scripts, literate documents and version control. Includes spreadsheet analysis tools that AIEEA-PG names.
In the exams: AIEEA-PG Group 07 'Excel data analysis tools, correlation and regression, t-test and one-way ANOVA' (heavy); AICE-JRF Ag Stat (applied); SAS certifications (heavy)
How our questions for ICAR-IASRI MSc and PhD spread across the units of Data Analysis with Statistical Software & Reproducible Research. Difficulty: 13 easy, 16 medium, 1 hard.
| R for designed experiments: aov, lm, emmeans and agricolae | 4 | |
| Data management: cleaning, validation and metadata | 4 | |
| Literate programming: R Markdown, Quarto and notebooks | 4 | |
| Web-based statistical computing portals for agricultural researchers | 4 | |
| Spreadsheets: statistical functions and data-analysis tools | 3 | |
| SPSS and point-and-click tools: uses and limits | 3 | |
| Genstat and specialist software for agricultural research | 3 | |
| Version control with Git | 3 | |
| Survey analysis software: design-based estimation with weights | 2 |
Choose an answer, then open the working. Each explanation says why the right answer is right and why the others are not.
A one-way ANOVA has SS between = 40 on 3 df and SS within = 120 on 16 df. The F statistic is:
B. 1.78
MSB = 13.33, MSW = 7.5, F = 13.33/7.5 ≈ 1.78; 0.33 is SSB/SSW.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
In R, which formula fits a randomised complete block model?
A. yield ~ block + variety
Blocks and treatments enter additively; the interaction is the error in an RCBD.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
After fitting a model in R, residuals plotted against fitted values are used to check:
B. Unequal variance or curvature
A funnel shape suggests variance increasing with the mean.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
Value labels in a menu package's data editor are used to:
D. Label numeric codes
For example, 1 = male, 2 = female.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
Design-generation software for variety trials typically produces:
C. Alpha and row–column designs
Efficient incomplete-block layouts for many entries.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
A consistency check would flag a record in which:
D. Harvest date precedes sowing date
Relationships between variables must make sense.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
For long-term archiving, data are best stored as:
C. UTF-8 CSV with a README
Open formats remain readable as software changes.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
Literate programming was proposed by:
B. Donald Knuth
Knuth described it in 1984.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
Before uploading unpublished data to an external portal, a researcher should check:
D. The service's data policy
Confidential data need acceptable protection.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
Some portals also generate:
A. Randomised layouts for new experiments
Randomisation tools support correct design.
Further reading: Welham et al., Statistical Methods in Biology (2015); Littell et al., SAS for Mixed Models (2006); Lumley, Complex Surveys (2010); Chacon and Straub, Pro Git (2014)
Ten here, 30 in the app. The Laisha app has every practice question we have written to ICAR-IASRI MSc and PhD in this subject, marked as you go, with timed papers, a jump-to-unanswered list and a certificate when you pass at 70 per cent.
Free for ten days, then one subscription of US$10 a month. We would rather say so here than have you find it later.
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