Dan Fortune, Global Business Systems Strategy & Growth Manager, Hexion, Inc. Fun Fact: I am a member of the Classical Mandolin Society of America. JMP User since 2003 What is your favorite feature in JMP? Dan's favorite JMP feature is dynamic linking. "I find that it often gives significant insight into what is happening with the data, insight that I might not otherwise get." If I could only pick one feature, I would have to say that dynamic linking is my favorite feature. This feature is a visual aid that I use all the time. I find that it often gives significant insight into what is happening with the data, insight that I might not otherwise get. What was your first job (ever)? My first job after college was as a Quality Assurance Engineer for Texas Instruments. I worked with military electronics and had many opportunities to see cutting-edge technology at work many years before commercial applications were released. Of all the jobs I’ve had, this was the most interesting from a technology perspective. What is your proudest professional moment? By using something as simple as multiple comparisons, I was able to identify a difference between inspectors that led to our customer accepting a part that had been designated for scrap. Additionally, this investigation led to recovery of a part that had been scrapped before I started with the company. The financial impact of the customer accepting these parts was approximately $400K. The fact that I was very new in the position made for quick credibility in the group/company and with our customer. How did you get interested in Six Sigma? Is it something you always knew you wanted to do or were you inspired by someone/something? My undergraduate degree was in industrial engineering. While Six Sigma is not specifically linked to a particular degree, industrial engineering seems to fit quite well in terms of body of knowledge. My graduate degree was also within the industrial engineering field and focused even more on the statistical side of engineering activities. Perhaps it could be described as a perfect storm of interests, education and work that brought me to Six Sigma. You never know what the future holds and titles aren’t always explicitly descriptive, but it would be hard to imagine my career departing significantly from the body of knowledge of Six Sigma. What do you like most about the work you do? Currently, I am involved in R&D work that takes me in many different directions: from the laboratory to the field to the customer. The analytical applications are quite diverse, and there is always a heightened level of anticipation and excitement with each new development. How are you currently using JMP? I have recently increased my work with the Functional Data Explorer platform to analyze chemical reactions, as well as spectral and functional results from experiments. This is something that has the potential to become a very important part of our R&D activities. What is the first project you worked on using JMP? I’m not certain what the first project was, but the most memorable from my early years of using JMP was using JSL to write simulation using manufacturing and mating part variation to predict usage of fixed-size parts to ensure proper stock level ratios and reduce part shortages in production. This saved quite a bit of money but, more importantly, demonstrated the capabilities and benefits of being able to use analytical tools. Is there anything you would like to say to JMP development or John Sall? Keep up the good work and continue to offer more innovative tools so that users can satisfy customers’ increasing analytical needs. Continue to focus on visual capabilities because this feature sells ideas better than numbers alone. How do you see the field of data science progressing in the next 20-50 years? The rate of increase in computational capability, availability of data, and analytical algorithm development is at its highest ever. That rate of increase will continue to grow as time passes, making prediction impossible. With that caveat, I would guess that the function of the human brain will become better understood and that its functions and variations will be used in more algorithms. I would expect that increasing connectivity will allow access to more and more data supporting more and more complex algorithms. I would expect specialization in the field of data science/analytics to expand and fuel the acceleration of algorithm development, as well as cross-pollination of ideas across fields. It would not surprise me if these things happen in the next 10 years rather than waiting 20-50 years to take place. What advice would you give a beginning JMP user? While its analysis platforms are very powerful, JMP has many capabilities that will speed up your data prep work. In many cases, data prep is the largest part of the work, so focusing on learning the capabilities of the tools in the Tables and Columns menus can really pay dividends. Also, I would suggest that you explore Graph Builder to help you communicate information better. Finally, I would suggest that you take the 30-day challenge. For 30 days, use JMP for everything that you would normally do in Excel. At the end of that 30 days, you may choose not to go back to Excel and your productivity may increase significantly. For certain, your knowledge of JMP will increase significantly. ... View more

Jon Kishiyama, Applications Engineer, Nikon Fun Fact: As a prank, I once used a temporary loophole in Arizona state law to get my name in the paper as a candidate for governor. JMP User since 1998   Another fun fact from Jon Kishiyama: Most pronounce Nikon as Ny-con. The pronunciation is actually Knee-con. What is your favorite feature in JMP? Oddly enough, journals. My usage of them is more day-to-day custom data visualization meets PowerPoint. What was your first job (ever)? My first job was sweeping floors and stocking shelves at a small local store in the neighborhood. I was 10 or 11 years old (I’m not going to mention the year) at the time and was working to purchase a Crossman BB gun. What is your proudest professional moment? This is an easy one. Finding 10mV that many folks had been trying to find for about two years. Reviewing what they had done and researching a wee bit more, I observed the DOEs performed previously were on point but not executed with the diligence required to observe such a small difference. Focusing on the key variables from previous work and research, while strictly controlling the execution, provided an “aha” in two months. How did you get interested in engineering? Is it something you always knew you wanted to do or were you inspired by someone/something? Like many youngsters, I tore most everything apart to see what was inside. What it actually boiled down to was air conditioning. I worked at a TV repair shop and enjoyed being in the cool confines of the shop as opposed to the 100+ degree summers in Arizona. From there, my interest grew in electronics, so much so that I pursued a degree in electrical engineering.   What do you like most about the work you do? Finding the answer. Seems like a standard canned answer. I’ve been in the semiconductor industry for a very long time; the one constant has been finding a solution to the problem(s). How are you currently using JMP? Today, most of my JMP time is scripting. I’m eight months into a new job and spend a good percentage of my time building reports for things that needed to be done but hadn’t been until I got there. The carrot is the server we should be purchasing so I can look over a wee bit more data using machine learning skills I’ve picked up at previous employers.   What is the first project you worked on using JMP? That’s a while back. We were just learning the capabilities in the early days. So my early use was with qualifying and matching tools. Simple t-tests, distribution matching, etc.   Is there anything you would like to say to JMP development or John Sall? Keep up the good work. How do you see the field of data science progressing in the next 20-50 years? I’ve seen with my own eyes the capabilities of resourced machine learning projects, and many are currently out there pushing it. For the next 20-50 years, my vision is ubiquitous everything, meaning that every “thing” communicates with most every other “thing.” Of course, you will need the data scientists to “see” what’s going on. What advice would you give a beginning JMP user? Three things: Learn the basics of statistics, either through your work, JMP STIPS or a stats course so you can qualify discussions of the output in common language. Utilize JMP Tutorials, JMP on YouTube, and other online classes to see and reinforce best methods while learning new concepts. Seek help and guidance through discussions with other JMP users in your organization to embrace continuous learning and improve. Follow activities on Kaggle and Data Science Central. ... View more

Vic Strecher, Professor, University of Michigan, School of Public Health and Director for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship JMP User since 1989 Fun Facts: Vic is a huge fan of the dung beetle and has included one as a main character in his graphic novel, "On Purpose: Lessons in Life and Health from the Frog, the Dung Beetle, and Julia" (his name is Winston). Vic was the first keynote speaker to get a standing ovation at Discovery Summit.    Vic Strecher, a JMP user since 1989, says, "JMP made me a better, more creative, and more productive scientist." How long have you been a JMP user? Since the beginning. When was that? Must be over 30 years ago. I was an Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina’s School of Public Health. On a whim, I watched John Sall demo his new program on a Mac. I was one of the few Mac users in our school, but I had been using mini-computers to analyze data (and mainframes before that). The visual experience of analyzing data using JMP, combined with the completely different approach of using data type to select appropriate statistics, sold me. What is your favorite feature in JMP? I use quite a few features, but my favorite has to be the ability to carefully dissect statistical interactions in Fit Model using plot and contrast. As a behavioral scientist, interactions have always been the most interesting thing to analyze, since they tell you how different types of people respond differently to the same stimuli. It’s re-affirming to know that we’re not all the same. For example, as I prepared for my keynote at the JMP Discovery Summit Tokyo, I was interested in cross-cultural differences in how people respond to stress, and how having a purpose in life influences us. Hint: Japanese and US cultures are different! What was your first job (ever)? Paper route. Hard job when you’re 4 feet tall and have 4 feet of Christmas-season newspapers buried in a foot of snow at 6:00am. Merry Christmas! What is your proudest professional moment? When I finished delivering those newspapers. Another was when I became the Innovator of the Year at the University of Michigan. A very big moment came when a company I founded, HealthMedia, reached over 50 million people. The company was later sold to Johnson & Johnson. How did you get interested in research and behavioral science?  Is it something you always knew you wanted to do or were you inspired by someone/something? Throughout my undergraduate education I never thought that behavioral science would be my calling. It was only after interning in our state Health Department’s Biostatistics Unit and learning that over 50% of premature disease and death is related to our behaviors and lifestyles. I realized that I needed to learn how to quantify the unquantifiable. Factors like stress, confidence, motivation, social support, and more recently, purpose in life.    What do you like most about the work you do? This’ll sound trite but my answer has to be nearly everything, in part because I’ve cut out most of the things I don’t like.  At the University of Michigan, I love research and teaching. At Kumanu, the business I founded, I love getting the market excited about our revolutionary “Purpose Activation Platform.” I guess I also just love building amazing things with really smart people. How are you currently using JMP? Lately I’ve been using Text Explorer in JMP Pro. At Kumanu we’ve collected over 19,000 purposes people have in life and work, and Text Explorer has helped us create typologies of different purposes people have in retirement and at work.   What is the first project you worked on using JMP? We were testing a very early software-based tailored smoking cessation program. JMP helped me discover secrets hidden in the data: important interactions that we would later target and test.   Is there anything you would like to say to JMP development or John Sall? Just, “thank you.” Most careers have small inflection points that a person can take advantage of. Walking into the room with John Sall demonstrating a beta version of JMP was one of these. That’s not hyperbole. JMP made me a better, more creative, and more productive scientist. How do you see the field of data science progressing in the next 20-50 years? With more data there will be more signals but also more noise. I don’t believe in the notion that predictive modeling will be taken over completely by high-powered computers. We’ll still need high-powered people to know what questions to ask. What advice would you give a beginning JMP user? I’d suggest getting used to the data management and formula tools first. They’re generally intuitive but do require a bit of practice. Then enjoy looking at your data! ... View more

What is SAS ® Global Forum, you ask? It is the premier event for SAS professionals worldwide, offering educational and networking opportunities, as the conference has done since the first meeting in 1976. The conference is an annual event planned and sponsored by the SAS Global Users Group, which is open to all SAS software users throughout the world. This year’s conference will be held in San Francisco’s Moscone Center West from April 28 – May 1, and JMP will be shown in many ways. You can find JMP incorporated into some of the sessions listed below. And some of these presentations will be by our very own JMP development staff.                                                                               Session Date 500-2013 Opinion Mining and Geo-Positioning of Textual Feedback from Professional Drivers Speakers: Mantosh Kumar Sarkar, Oklahoma State University; Goutam Chakraborty, Oklahoma State University Location: Room 2004 - Moscone West Monday, April 29 5:30 p.m.-5:50 p.m. 008-2013 Tips and Techniques for Moving SAS Data to JMP Graph Builder for iPad Speaker: Michael Hecht, SAS Location: Room 2014 - Moscone West Tuesday, April 30 8:00 a.m.-8:50 a.m. 434-2013 From Big Data to Big Statistics Speaker: John Sall, SAS Location: Room 3016 - Moscone West Tuesday, April 30 9:30 a.m.-10:20 a.m. 010-2013 Give the Power of SAS to Excel Users Without Making Them Write SAS Code Speaker: William Benjamin, Owl Computer Consultancy LLC Location: Room 2014 - Moscone West Tuesday, April 30 9:30 a.m.-9:50 a.m. 331-2013 10-Minute JMP Speaker: George Hurley, The Hershey Company Location: Room 2003 - Moscone West Tuesday, April 30 3:45 p.m.-3:55 p.m. 105-2013 Be Customer Wise or Otherwise: Combining Data Mining and Interactive Visual Analytics to Analyze Large and Complex Customer Resource Management (CRM) Data Speaker: Junyao Ji, SAS Location: Room 2004 - Moscone West Tuesday, April 30 5:30 p.m.-5:50 p.m. 179-2013 Assessing Drug Safety with Bayesian Hierarchical Modeling Using PROC MCMC and JMP Speaker: Richard Zink, SAS Location: Room 2000 - Moscone West Wednesday, May 1 11:00 a.m.-11:50 a.m. See JMP in action at the SAS Support and Demo Area, located on Level 1 of Moscone West. This space is 64,256 square feet of SAS user delight. From Sunday evening until 5 p.m. on Wednesday when the demo floor closes, you can stop by the JMP booth and visit with JMP developers, ask those burning questions you may have, and talk with other JMP and SAS users about how you are using the software -- and if you’re lucky, you might even be able to find out a little bit about new features that will be available in JMP 11, which is coming out later this year. We will have cool giveaways, including JMP stickers and window clings (so you can spot your fellow JMP users), and you can join us in support of the International Year of Statistics by sporting an I ♥ Statistics, Statistics 2013, or 2013* pin. We will also be dealing out a new design of playing cards to show our love of statistics in every language. If you aren’t able to make it to San Francisco at all this year, you can still be a part of the action via SAS Global Forum Livestream! You can watch the opening session, the presentation by SAS Co-Founder and JMP chief architect John Sall -- From Big Data to Big Statistics on Tuesday morning from 9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. PST -- and Wednesday morning’s Live Report, all via the Livestream! That’s just a sampling of what you can expect from JMP at this year’s SAS Global Forum. If you’d like to learn more, visit the SAS Global Forum website. We hope to see you in San Francisco! ... View more