Information Based Diagnostic for Genetic Variance Parameter Estimation in Multi-Environment Trials.

Plant breeding programs evaluate varieties in series of field trials across years and locations, referred to as multi-environment trials (METs). These are an essential part of variety evaluation with the key aim of the statistical analysis of these datasets to accurately estimate the variety by environment (VE) effects. It has previously been thought that the number of varieties in common between environments, referred to as "variety connectivity," was a key driver of the reliability of genetic variance parameter estimation and that this in turn affected the reliability of predictions of VE effects.

How to use replicate weights in health survey analysis using the National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey as an example.

Objective: To conduct nutrition-related analyses on large-scale health surveys, two aspects of the survey must be incorporated into the analysis: the sampling weights and the sample design; a practice which is not always observed. The present paper compares three analyses: (1) unweighted; (2) weighted but not accounting for the complex sample design; and (3) weighted and accounting for the complex design using replicate weights.

Design: Descriptive statistics are computed and a logistic regression investigation of being overweight/obese is conducted using Stata.

Prevalence of physical activity behaviour in older people: findings from the Dynamic Analyses to Optimise Ageing (DYNOPTA) project and Australian national survey data.

Aim: Many older people lead sedentary lives. National Health Survey physical activity prevalence data provide limited coverage of the 'old old' (≥75 years).

Method: The Dynamic Analyses to Optimise Ageing (DYNOPTA) project's dataset provided physical activity data for 13,420 participants.

Alcohol and smoking consumption behaviours in older Australian adults: prevalence, period and socio-demographic differentials in the DYNOPTA sample.

Purpose: Alcohol consumption and tobacco use are key risk factors for chronic disease and health burden across the adult lifespan. We estimate the prevalence of alcohol consumption and smoking by age and time period in adults from mid to old age.

Methods: Participants (n = 50,652) were drawn from the Dynamic Analyses to Optimise Ageing (DYNOPTA) project and were compared with Australian National Health Survey data.

Understanding ageing in older Australians: the contribution of the Dynamic Analyses to Optimise Ageing (DYNOPTA) project to the evidence base and policy.

Aim: To describe the Dynamic Analyses to Optimise Ageing (DYNOPTA) project and illustrate its contributions to understanding ageing through innovative methodology, and investigations on outcomes based on the project themes. DYNOPTA provides a platform and technical expertise that may be used to combine other national and international datasets.

Methods: The DYNOPTA project has pooled and harmonised data from nine Australian longitudinal studies to create the largest available longitudinal dataset (n= 50652) on ageing in Australia.

Indigenous Australians are under-represented in longitudinal ageing studies.

Objective: Evidence-based policy depends on the availability of high-quality research that is relevant to the population. This study aimed to identify the available data on the health of older Indigenous Australians in population-based longitudinal studies of ageing.

Approach: Evaluation of the Dynamic Analyses to Optimise Ageing Project (DYNOPTA) dataset that has pooled nine Australian longitudinal ageing studies, six of which were analysed here.

Estimates of probable dementia prevalence from population-based surveys compared with dementia prevalence estimates based on meta-analyses.

Background: National data on dementia prevalence are not always available, yet it may be possible to obtain estimates from large surveys that include dementia screening instruments. In Australia, many of the dementia prevalence estimates are based on European data collected between 15 and 50 years ago. We derived population-based estimates of probable dementia and possible cognitive impairment in Australian studies using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and compared these to estimates of dementia prevalence from meta-analyses of European studies.