Assistant Professor of Mathematical Sciences

Office: Knott Hall 301e
Tel: (410) 617-2523
Email: rea@loyola.edu
Fax: (410) 617-2803

Professional Information:

• Ph.D., Statistics, Iowa State University

Dr. Auer regularly teaches MA 110 - Introduction to Statistical Methods and Data Analysis, MA 310 - Introduction to Probability and Statistics, MA 465 - Experimental Research Methods, and MA 466 - Experimental Design.

Research:

In 1999, Dr. Richard Auer was involved in two research endeavors that help to exemplify the wide expanse of topics that can be studied using statistics.

In one, two professors from Essex Community College in Baltimore County and Dr. Auer submitted a National Science Foundation Grant regarding analysis of the Chesapeake Bay. It was entitled Exploratory Studies of Trophic Interactions of Microbes With Submerged Aquatic Vegetation (SAV). SAV has been chosen as a principal indicator of the vitality of the Bay as it serves as an important food source for shellfish, fin fish, and waterfowl. Two rivers, Dundee Creek and Middle River, were selected for study as they have been exhibiting vastly different SAV growth levels. By studying the micro-environments of the rivers, logistical regression may suggest those microbial factors (concentration levels of various bacterial populations in water, sediment, and SAV leaf surface) that seem to significantly explain the difference between the healthy growth areas and the non-healthy areas.

In the other project, Dr. Donald Wolfe and Dr. Auer collaborated on a study of the U. S. Senate in an attempt to uncover the ways in which the odd representation scheme of the Senate affects the relative political power of citizens in various states and regions. Remember that all states elect exactly two Senators. With California being 64 times as populous as Wyoming, you can begin to see the type of impact this representation scheme can have. The paper, entitled A New Look at Disparities of Representation in the U. S. Senate: Peculiar Variations Among the Fifty States, the Eight Regions, and the Three Classes was submitted to the journal American Politics Quarterly.