Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Statistics FYI [posted by Troy] "The word statistics come from the Italian word statista, a person dealing with affairs from state (from stato, 'state'). It was originally called 'state arithmetic,' involving the tabulation of information about nations, especially for the purpose of taxation and planning the feasibility of wars." (p. 5) The many functions and tools of statistics come from many sources: Idea of Collecting Stats: came from ancient governmental requirements for information to run the government & insurance to calculate loss of ships to shipwreck and piracy Study of Mortality Rates: from 17th-century plague pits (counting bodies) Theory of Errors: began in the need to accurately calculate heavenly bodies in astronomy Theory of Correlation: came from biology in observing parents and children Probability Theory: from gambling Theory of Analysis of Experiments: began in breweries where guesses of the correct amount of wheat in a field could produce a tasty brew Theories of Measurement and Factor Analysis: came from personality psychology From Aron & Aron. Statistics for Psychology 3rd ed. Prentice Hall, 2003. 10:21:56 PM  permanent link  Reader Comments []  Google It!

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