Applied statistics drive sustainability and improve people's lives

Jesús López Fidalgo, Full Professor of Statistics at the Institute of data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DATAI) of the University of Navarra, and José Antonio Moler, Senior Associate Professor of Statistics and Operations research at the Public University of Navarra, have result the awards given by the BBVA Foundation and the Society of Statistics and Operations research (SEIO).

These awards are given to researchers whose scientific contributions help to make better decisions and optimize resources, thus boosting efficiency and social welfare. The ceremony took place at the Palacio del Marqués de Salamanca, in Madrid, and brought together national and international experts.

The work of these two professors consists of an appliedresearch on economic, environmental and social sustainability. The graduate design of experiments to estimate an adequate output size in a subject silo problem" and published in the journal Annals of Applied Statistics, was also carried out together with Caterina May, Professor of Statistics at the University of Eastern Piedmont (Italy) and had the partnership the laboratory of Granular Media of the University of Navarra.

Statistics to avoid bottlenecks and optimize resources

This innovative study proposes statistical solutions to prevent blockages and optimize the operation of grain storage systems, such as grain silos or mining tunnels. The researchers have validated their proposal through simulations and real data , highlighting its practical impact on agriculture and industry, with benefits in riskmanagement , cost reduction and environmental care. 

During the ceremony, the President of the SEIO, Begoña Vitoriano, and the director of the BBVA Foundation, Rafael Pardo, stressed the relevance of this work, which translates data into practical tools for the progress of society. In the words of López Fidalgo, "this recognition demonstrates the transformative power of applied statistics to build a sustainable future and improve people's lives". Moler also points out that "these awards show the social commitment to the presence of statistics in the training of our students".