Energy confinement in W7-AS has been analyzed in terms of dimensionall
y exact form free functions employing Bayesian probability theory. Bas
ed upon the international stellarator database, which contains the ene
rgy content for a wide variety of variable settings, predictions for s
ingle variable scans are made. The scaling functions for density and p
ower scans, respectively, are in quantitative agreement with data coll
ected in W7-AS. Furthermore, the optimal model for the description of
the global transport in W7-AS is identified as the collisional low-bet
a kinetic model. [S0031-9007(98)07405-5].