Title: Analytics and SAS: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Abstract: SAS has been a cornerstone of data analysis for over thirty years. In that time, data has grown from what can be contained in a box of computer cards to what can be contained on server farms. And the data analysis strategies in SAS software have grown from a handful of descriptive and regression procedures in SAS 72 to dozens of procedures in SAS/STAT alone. What is the data challenge that we face today? And how has SAS analytical software evolved to address it? From retail to government to health care, data and data analysis are affecting our lives and influencing how decisions are made. And as the purview of data analysis moves from science to mainstream, how is society responding?

Bio: Maura Stokes is R&D Director of Statistical Applications in the Advanced Analytics Division at SAS Institute, where she is development product manager for SAS/STAT. Her responsibilities involve research of additional methodologies and implementation, documentation, and outreach to the statistical community. She is currently editor of the SAS Statistics and Operations Research e-newsletter. Stokes received her DrPH from the Department of Biostatistics at the University of North Carolina in 1986. Lead author of Categorical Data Analysis with the SAS System, she has taught workshops on applied statistical topics for many years. She is currently Secretary of the ENAR statistical organization and also holds positions in the American Statistical Association. Stokes was elected a Fellow of the American Statistical Association in 2008.