A story about the gap between population probability and lived experience of pregnancy and childbirth has been named the winner of the 2026 Statistical Excellence Award for Early-Career Writing.
‘On Expectation’ – written by Taya Collyer, a senior research fellow at Monash University, Australia – was described by judges as “personal, emotionally powerful, and statistically precise”, giving one judge “shivers” because of its “candour, rigour and sense of urgency”.
The Statistical Excellence Award for Early-Career Writing invites early-career statisticians and data scientists to tell a data-related story that matters to them – one that helps society understand today’s biggest issues, and make better decisions. Jointly organised by Significance and the Young Statisticians Section of the Royal Statistical Society, the competition forms part of the RSS Statistical Excellence Awards programme.
Judging took place throughout June and this year’s winner was announced at the Royal Statistical Society’s Statistical Excellence Awards ceremony at the British Medical Association headquarters in central London on 8 July.
RSS President John Aston opens the 2026 RSS Statistical Excellence Awards in London on 8 July 2026. Photo: Richard Gray
Runners up were Saf Flatters, a student at Curtin University in Australia, for ‘Escaping False Valleys’ and Ridhima Gupta, a graduate of the University of Edinburgh, for ‘You’re Not Below Average. It’s Just Mathematics’.
Tobias O’Keefe, a PhD candidate at the University of Oxford, UK, was highly commended for his entry ‘The Hypochondria Machine’.
The three finalists have been invited to present papers based on their articles at the RSS International Conference 2026, which takes place 7-10 September 2026 in Bournemouth, UK. The winning article will be published in a future print edition of Significance and its digital version. Runners-up and the highly commended entry will be published on the Significance website.
Significance editorial board chair Timandra Harkness introduces the 2026 Statistical Excellence Award for Early-Career Writing in London on 8 July 2026. Photo: Richard Gray
The 2027 Statistical Excellence Award for Early-Career Writing will open in February 2027. Check the Significance print edition, website and social media for updates.
You might also like: Last year’s winning article, by Zhaoxi Zhang, and this one by finalist Sarah Lotspeich
