Elementary Statistics

• Published in: Research Methods for Postgraduates pp. 287 - 298
• Main Author: Hand, David J
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 08.09.2016
• Subjects: Bernoulli Distribution; binomial Distribution; mathematical properties; normal distribution; Poisson Distribution; statistical methods
• ISBN: 1118341465; 9781118341469
• DOI: 10.1002/9781118763025.ch28

Computers enable us to concentrate on the higher level tasks, the seeking for patterns and structures in data as well as the comparison of theories with the data, without subjecting ourselves to the tedium of endless arithmetic ‐ the computer, one might even say, has transformed statistics into a creative discipline. The power of the computer means that we do not have to dwell on the algebra and arithmetic of statistical methods. For all but the most basic of operations on very small datasets, one will use a calculator or computer. This chapter focuses on statistical concepts and the properties of statistical methods rather than on the mechanics, which electronics will do for one. Some distributions are particularly important in statistics, perhaps because data often follow such a distribution, or because they have attractive mathematical properties. The chapter discusses simple distributions such as Bernoulli distribution, binomial distribution, Poisson distribution, and normal distribution.