The range of approaches to scientific questions is as varied as the data and methods of analysis. Data can be analyzed across published studies (meta-analyses); extracted from large, diverse, databases (data mining); collected from surveys; and generated from explicitly designed experiments. Many statistical software products are available from outside the field of scientific experimentation, from subjects like finance, medicine, meteorology, political science, sociology, and even sports. If the design is appropriate, software from these distant fields may be applicable to scientific situations.
Here, The Scientist focuses on software available for the researcher designing experiments and analyzing, interpreting, and presenting data. As the number of statistical software packages available is probably in the thousands, an exhaustive review is not feasible. Instead, this article hones in on some of the major commercial players selling a broad array of statistical tools likely to be useful to laboratory scientists. Comparisons among packages are made ...
