Statistics: Principles and Methods, 7th Edition

Preface

THE NATURE OF THE BOOK

Statistics is the science of learning from data. It encompasses making measurements, reaching conclusions, and communicating the amount of related uncertainty. Its principles help determine what conclusions are reliable and, more generally, provide the navigational guidance for making advances in science and addressing societal issues. Statistics—the subject of data analysis and data-based reasoning—is necessarily playing a vital role in virtually all professions. Some familiarity with this subject is now an essential component of any college education. Yet, pressures to accommodate a growing list of academic requirements often necessitate that this exposure be brief. Keeping these conditions in mind, this book provides students with a first exposure to the powerful ideas of modern statistics. It presents the key statistical concepts and the most commonly applied methods of statistical analysis. It is accessible to freshmen and sophomores from a wide range of disciplines because we have avoided most mathematical derivations. They can pose a stumbling block to learning the essentials in a short period of time.

This book does not require students to have a strong background in mathematics. It is intended for those who seek to learn the basic ideas of statistics and their application in a variety of practical settings. The core material of this book is common to almost all first courses in statistics and is designed to be covered well within a one-semester ...