Purpose
The purpose of the DAE conference series is to provide support and encouragement to junior researchers in the field of design and analysis of experiments and to stimulate interest in topics of practical relevance to science and industry. In the summer of 2000, researchers from North America and abroad in the area of experimental design, including a large group of young talented new researchers, attended the First Midwest Conference for New Directions in Experimental Design in Columbus, Ohio, organized by Angela Dean, Kathryn Chaloner, Dibyen Majumdar and Dennis Lin. This conference had a focus on applications of design in industry and was well received. A discussion group reached consensus that a series of similar conferences should be held every two or three years at different locations in North America. Subsequently, in July of 2002, DAE was organized by Randy Sitter and held in Vancouver, Canada, which was followed by DAE 2003 (Conference in New Directions in Experimental Design), which was organized by Kathryn Chaloner, Angela Dean and Dibyen Majumdar and held in Chicago in the spring of 2003. DAE 2005 is the fourth conference in the DAE conference series. It will focus on emerging areas of research in experimental design, as well as novel innovations in traditional areas. Its principal aims are to provide support and encouragement to junior researchers in the field of design and analysis of experiments and to stimulate interest in topics of practical relevance to science and industry.