Associated Instructors

About

Dr. Bruce Levin has a long-standing interest in the application of statistics in the law and the use of innovative statistical methods for clinical trials. With respect to statistics in the law, Dr. Levin has served as an expert statistical witness in many cases, including administrative hearings and equal employment opportunity lawsuits. He is the co-author with the lawyer Michael O. Finkelstein of the textbook, Statistics for Lawyers, now in its 3rd Edition.  With respect to clinical trials, using sequential statistical methods, Dr. Levin has published on innovative trial designs that minimize ethical costs, and has been involved in the design of many clinical trials.  As the senior statistical design consultant to the Statistical Analysis Center, within the Department of Biostatistics, Dr. Levin helped design the Warfarin and Aspirin in Reduced Cardiac Ejection Fraction (WARCEF) trial, the Co-enzyme Q10 in ALS (QALS) trial, and other trials in cardiology and neurology. Dr. Levin is also the Director of the Statistics, Epidemiology, and Data Management Core of the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies, a joint center of Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute.  In this role he oversees the statistical design, analysis, and, together with the Center's Performance and Safety Monitoring Board, oversees the conduct of the trials.  He is an expert in the analysis of categorical data and co-authored the classic textbook, Statistical Methods for Rates and Proportions, 3rd Edition, Myunghee Cho Paik and the late Joseph L. Fleiss.  He also published The Biostatistics of Aging: From Gompertzian Mortality to an Index of Aging-Relatedness with Gilberto Levy.

Credentials & Experience

Education & Training

PhD, 1974 Harvard University

Committees, Societies, Councils

Fellow, American Statistical Association
APHA Statistics Section Award Winner
Member, International Biometrics Society, ENAR
Member, Institute of Mathematical Statistics

Honors & Awards

Statistics Section Award, American Public Health Association, 2008
Fellow, American Statistical Association, 2001
Summa Cum Laude, Columbia College, 1968
Phi Beta Kappa, Columbia College, 1968

Research

Research Interests

• Biostatistical Methods
• Chronic disease
• HIV/AIDS
• Infectious Diseases
• Maternal and Reproductive Health

Selected Publications

Michael O. Finkelstein and Bruce Levin Statistics for Lawyers, 3rd Edition. Springer-Verlag New York, NY 2015

Fleiss, J.L., Levin, B., and Paik, M.C. Statistical Methods for Rates and Proportions, 3rd Edition. Wiley New York, NY 2003

Levy, G. and Levin, B. (2014). The Biostatistics of Aging: From Gompertzian Mortality to an Index of Aging-Relatedness. New York: Wiley.

Levin, B. and C.-S. Leu. On an Inequality That Implies the Lower Bound Formula for the Probability of Correct Selection in the Levin-Robbins-Leu Family of Sequential Binomial Subset Selection Procedures. Sequential Analysis 32 404-427 2013

Caplan, A., Plunkett, C., and Levin, B. (2015). Selecting the Right Tool for the Job (invited paper). American Journal of Bioethics 15(4):4-10 (with open peer commentaries, pp. 33-50).

Caplan, A., Plunkett, C., and Levin, B. (2015). The Perfect Must Not Overwhelm the Good: Response to Open Peer Commentaries on ""Selecting the Right Tool For the Job"". American Journal of Bioethics 15(4):W8-W10.

Levin, B., Thompson, J.L.P., Chakraborty, B., Levy, G., MacArthur, R.B., Haley, E.C. (2011). Statistical Aspects of the TNK-S2B Trial of Tenecteplase versus Alteplase in Acute Ischemic Stroke: An Efficient, Dose-Adaptive, Seamless Phase II/III Design. Clinical Trials 8:398-407.

Bruce Levin The Saddlepoint Correction in Conditional Logistic Likelihood Analysis. Biometrika 77 275-285 1990

Finkelstein, M.O. and Levin, B. Bush v. Gore: Two Neglected Lessons from a Statistical Perspective. Jurimetrics 2004

M.O. Finkelstein and B. Levin On the Probative Value of Evidence from a Screening Search. Jurimetrics 43 265-290 2003

Urban Health Activities

Statistics, Epidemiology and Data Management (SED) Core of the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies

This multidisciplinary AIDS Research Center focuses on behavioral strategies for prevention of HIV infection and coping with HIV/AIDS in neglected populations. Dr. Levin is director of the SED Core, which is responsible for statistical design and analysis, data management, and epidemiologic considerations for the Center?s funded randomized behavioral intervention trials.

Warfarin vs. Aspirin in Reduced Cardiac Ejection Fraction-STAT

This is the Statistical Analysis and Anticoagulation Data Management Center for a multi-center double blind randomized clinical trial to determine whether warfarin or aspirin is better at preventing stroke and death in patients with reduced cardiac ejection fraction. Dr. Levin is the senior statistical consultant.