Researcher

Professor David I Warton

My Expertise

Statistics, ecological & environmental statistics.

Keywords

Fields of Research (FoR)

Statistics, Applied statistics, Statistical theory, Statistical data science, Ecological applications

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Biography

I am an ecological statistician who advances methodology for data analysis in ecology, to improve the ability of ecologists to answer important research questions. I lead the Eco-Stats group, which has attracted over $8M in ARC research funding, and is based in the School of Mathematics and Statistics and affiliated with the Evolution & Ecology Research Centre.  My cross-disciplinary research involves evaluating the methods for data analysis...view more

I am an ecological statistician who advances methodology for data analysis in ecology, to improve the ability of ecologists to answer important research questions. I lead the Eco-Stats group, which has attracted over $8M in ARC research funding, and is based in the School of Mathematics and Statistics and affiliated with the Evolution & Ecology Research Centre.  My cross-disciplinary research involves evaluating the methods for data analysis currently used in ecology, and where necessary, developing new methodologies to assist ecologists answer key research questions.  I am also the founding director of Stats Central, the UNSW statistical consulting and collaboration unit.


My Grants

  • 2021-23 ARC Discovery Project ($410,000) Warton DI & Stoklosa J "Innovative statistical methods for analysing high-dimensional counts"
  • 2019-23 NHMRC grant ($933,605) Herbert R, Novak I, Rae C, Warton DI, Bolsterlee B, Morgan C, "Muscle growth and muscle contracture in cerebral palsy"
  • 2018-2020 ARC Discovery Project ($371,923) Warton DI, "New insights from point event data in ecology"
  • 2015-2018 ARC Linkage Project ($556,256) Keith D, Phinn S, Elith RJ, Warton DI, Connolly D, "Advancing vegetation classification and mapping to meet conservation needs"
  • 2015-2017 ARC Discovery Grant ($259,500) Warton DI, "Advances in biodiversity modelling - analysis of high-dimensional counts"
  • 2012-2016 ARC Future Fellowship ($624,856) Warton DI, "Predicting the ecological impacts of climate change: advancing tools for the analysis of high-dimensional data in ecology"
  • 2012-2014 ARC Discovery Project ($300,000) Warton DI "New approaches to predictive modelling of high-dimensional count data to study climate impacts on ecological communities"
  • 2010-2013 ARC Linkage Grant ($401,000) Ramp D, Warton DI, Jenkins KM, Ashcroft MB, Gollan JR, Driver P "Innovative approaches to identifying regional responses of biodiversity to climate change"
  • 2009-2011 ARC Discovery Project ($282,000) Warton DI "Advances in statistical methods for analysing high dimensional count data"
  • 2009-2011 ARC Discovery Project ($300,000) Warton DI, Andrew NR & Gibb H "Predicting the effect of climate change on community structure and function: an assessment using temperate grassland invertebrates"
  • 2008 UNSW Goldstar Award ($30,000) Warton DI "Advances in statistical methods for analysing community abundance data in the environmental sciences"
  • 2007-2009 ARC Linkage Project ($450,000) Kingsford RT, Laffan SW, Warton DI, Merson JA, Bradstock RA, Mulley R, Auld TD & Chapple RS "Managing Ecosystem Change in the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area"
  • 2007 UNSW Goldstar Award ($40,000)Warton DI "Advances in statistical methods for analysing community abundance data in the environmental sciences"

My Qualifications

  • PhD in Ecological Statistics (Macquarie, 2003)
  • MA in Mathematical Statistics (Sydney, 1999)
  • BSc (Hons) majoring in Ecology and Pure Mathematics (Sydney, 1997)
  • Graduate Certificate in University Learning and Teaching (UNSW, 2004)

My Awards

2019-22 Highly Cited Researcher (Web of Science group)

2020 Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales

2014 Christopher Heyde Medal (for contributions to statistics and probability theory), Australian Academy of Sciences

2014 Young Investigator Award, American Statistical Association (Section on Statistics and the Environment)

2009 NSW/ACT Young Tall Poppy Award for research achievement and science communication

2005 Learning and Teaching Award, UNSW Faculty of Science


My Research Activities

  • Evaluate methods for study design and analysis currently used in ecology
  • Where necessary, develop new methodologies to assist ecologists answer key research questions (sometimes new types of questions that have never been answered before)

My cross-disciplinary research is primarily of a statistical nature but it involves collaborating with ecologists as well as statisticians and researchers from related disciplines, nationally and internationally. Although my research is grounded in ecological questions, it ranges from applied to quite theoretical, with methodological contributions to multivariate analysis (for applications in allometry), high-dimensional data analysis (for applications in community ecology), model selection and point process modelling (for species distribution modelling). But I would be willing to try my hand at pretty much any challenging methodological problem arising in ecology!


My Research Supervision


Supervision keywords


Areas of supervision

I’m keen to discuss potential research project ideas with any student with interests in statistical problems arising from concrete applications, whether the project itself is applied or theoretical. Especially (but not necessarily!) at the interface with ecology. Statistics is a highly technical discipline, so training in the mathematical sciences is important, ideally with some specialisation in statistics. I’m especially familiar with problems in high-dimensional analysis, latent variable modelling, errors-in-variables modelling, and point process modelling, but am open to suggestions if you have another idea.

Some specific project ideas can be found at http://www.eco-stats.unsw.edu.au/opportunities.html

I’m affiliated with both the School of Mathematics and Statistics and the Evolution & Ecology Research Centre, through either of which you can enrol, and both of which have active Honours and postgraduate research programs – including an annual postgraduate conference, workshops for additional training, teaching opportunities as a classroom tutor or lab demonstrator, and more. In all of which you will be encouraged to participate! The Eco-Stats Research Group meets weekly to discuss current research by its members and recent developments in the literature more broadly. One of the exciting things about research is the opportunity to travel to and meet and work with people from all around the world. Our group is building an extensive network of collaborators, and there is a good chance you will get to work with ecologists and/or statisticians from Australia or maybe internationally. We regularly present our work at conferences – in the last couple of years, Eco-Stats researchers presented in St Andrews (Scotland), Oregon, Seattle, Queenstown and Hobart.  And Canberra.


Currently supervising

Maeve McGillyCuddy (2018-), Model-based mixed model inference for multivariate abundances

Michelle Lim (2018-), Equivalence testing of multivariate abundances for restoration studies

Ben Maslen (2021-), Using machine learning to classifying fish from videos 

Sam Mason (2021-), Spatio-temporal species distribution modelling

 

For more details see Eco-Stats - People.


My Engagement

Director of Stats Central

Deputy Director of Postgraduate Studies (Coursework), School of Mathematics and Statistics

Associate Editor, Journal of Agricultural, Biological and Environmental Statistics

Associate Editor, Annals of Applied Statistics


My Teaching

MATH5935 - Statistical Consultancy.

MATH2089 - Numerical Methods and Statistics

DATA3001 - Data Science and Decisions in Practice

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Location

School of Mathematics and Statistics
University of New South Wales
Sydney NSW 2052
The Red Centre
Room 2052

Contact

+61 2 9385 7031
+61 2 9385 7123

Videos

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