Book Description

A brief introduction to business statistics that balances a conceptual understanding of statistics with the real-world application of statistical methodology.This essentials version features selected core topics from the authors' market-leading Statistics for Business and Economics, 8th, presented in 13 chapters. It includes the highly-regarded strengths of the longer text, including the problem-scenario approach that uses real-world examples to introduce statistical techniques.Methods, Applications, and Self-Test exercises include hundreds of problems based on real data.Examples and exercises throughout focus on ways that statistics contribute to improving the quality of products and services. This text can also be computer integrated at the discretion of the instructor. Instruction for data analysis based on Microsoft Excel and Minitab is included in appendices of appropriate chapters. Case problems are also provided with the text, with data sets available on disk for both Minitab and Excel formats. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great Text!!
The information in this book is clear-cut, concise, and easy to read. Easily understandable examples are given for the various statistical formulas, and extras like z-score value charts and the like help a lot. If you have a talented instructor leading your Stats class (like I did) in addition to this text, you will be sure to ace this course (like I did)!

P.S.: If you happen to be an Information Systems/Information Technology major (such as myself) DO NOT RE-SELL THIS BOOK! You will need the information in this book in your future Info Systems courses, and you will definitely realize the TRUE value of this text!

A useful book. . .
. . .by authors who remember that they are writing for persons who are NOT professional mathematicians.

In today's world, frequently persons enter the business profession from a background in something other than what in the past might have been considered traditional avenues. Not all business textbooks recognize this (see my review for "Mathematical Applications")! However, this book seems to be an exception.

The material is presented in a logical format; key formulae are highlighted and set off from the rest of the text; and in-depth business examples are given in each chapter, demonstrating the particular statistical tools to be taught.

A useful and recommended volume. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Good intro for self-study
This is an introductory book. It also fits in introductory level of Mathematical Statistics. The prerequisites are introductory calculus and linear algebra. Most theorems are proved in calculus style but there are some gIt can be shownsh that are not proved. So some readers may not be satisfied with the book, especially Math majors.

Logical steps are shown in detail; else logical gaps are contained within a level such that a first time reader can fill in the gap with a pencil and paper. Occasional mix with Bayesian perspective is also a feature. Answers to odd-numbered exercises are provided except ones that ask derivations and proofs. Exercises that require some tricks are provided with hints. In these respects, this textbook is suitable for self-study.

Upon completion of the entire material, I feel concepts are developed well up to Hypothesis testing Chapter 8 where the presentation of material reaches climax and its level of exposition is somewhat higher than other chapters. Thereafter, simple linear regression is treated in detail, but coverage and detail of materials seem to deteriorate from the following general regression section, nonparametrics and thereafter. Kolmogorov-Smirnov Tests section is treated nicely though. Anova section lacks in coverage. The new simulation chapter is presented more like a demonstration rather than an introduction.

I have never seen the previous 2nd edition (unfortunately Dr. Degroot is no longer with us), but according to the preface of this 3rd edition, Dr. Schervish describes 8 major changes from the previous edition. Notable are some material removed from the previous (likelihood principle, Gauss-Markov theorem, and stepwise regression), some added (lognormal distribution, quantiles, prediction and prediction intervals, improper priors, Bayes test, power functions, M-estimators, residual plots in linear models and Bayesian analysis of simple linear regression), more exercises and examples, special notes, introduction and summary to each section, and so on. I find the last in the list is somewhat disturbing, especially introduction parts that are often redundant with the very next paragraph. On the other hand, I find that special notes provide good insights.

I wish they included introduction to Statistical Decision theory, full coverage of regression analysis to be usable such as diagnosis, transformation and variable selection, coverage of Multivariate Normal distribution, more coverage and depth in nonparametrics and simulation, and lists of recommended readings for further study at the end of each section with comments.

There are a noticeable number of typos as of this first printing I have. I sent suggestions for typos and was impressed that Dr. Schervish updated errata list within a few days at his homepage. I wish all authors were like him being responsible.

How to remain a classic
This new editon mantains the features that have made it a classical for a long time:

- Clearly written;
- Tough subjects are made understandable even for beginners;
- Classical results are presented rigorously after a bunch of examples;
- Many exercises, well posed, whose solutions are found in the end of the book (just even exercises).

This books has been long without a revision and we can see easily that it is much better. The main improvement is the computational treatment of Statistics in terms of theory and exercises. And, of course, it is visually more pleasant.

You may think this is little, though. But, a classical is so well done that there is not much more to do. This is the case. So the second author adds what was difficult when DeGroot first wrote it (computational stuff, as I said) and suppress what is out of fashion or has been overcome.

I think it is still the best option to start out to learn Statistics.

Cannot follow the logic --2nd Ed.
First of all I don't know how the 3rd and 2nd Edition differ.

I am trying to learn Probability and Statistics on my own, and I find it very difficult with this book.

The book does do somethings well. It does explain concepts better than what I have read so far (Schaum's). However, in the sections on combinatorics, especially, and thereafter I cannot follow the logic. I read an example problem, the solution is given immediately with little explanation as to how. The author says the bare minimum e.g. here n=52 and k=13. I have seen the combinatoric calculations, that are the solutions, in a multitude of ways, with sums in the numerator, products in the numerator, and it is not at all obvious as to why. There is insufficient discussion in the solution.

Then in working the exercises, there is nonuniform quality with the even-number solutions. Some answers just have a number, others have the formula, and some have numbers with factorials so you can kind of guess what the author did. But in the case where there is just a number, you can't.

Can you learn from this book? Sure you can, but my prediction (after reading Ch. 1) is that it's about as difficult as trying to learn a programming language by looking at syntax and running the code, having no programming experience.

Great stats book
I used to hate statistics, but this book is pretty clear and concise, and gets the idea across very quickly and easily. The exercise questions were of reasonable difficulty, and are put forth in a clear manner, unlike other books which present the questions in round-about manner. The examples tend to follow on or build upon from the earlier chapters, so it is best to tackle the book in the order as prescribed by the chapters.

best introduction to the field
I have looked at many introductory books to probability and statistics and this one is definitely the best. It is very clear and readable and yet gets to pretty advanced stuff. ... Read more

Book Description

If you have ever looked for P-values by shopping at P mart, tried to watch the Bernoulli Trails on "People's Court," or think that the standard deviation is a criminal offense in six states, then you need The Cartoon Guide to Statistics to put you on the road to statistical literacy.

The Cartoon Guide to Statistics covers all the central ideas of modern statistics: the summary and display of data, probability in gambling and medicine, random variables, Bernoulli Trails, the Central Limit Theorem, hypothesis testing, confidence interval estimation, and much more--all explained in simple, clear, and yes, funny illustrations. Never again will you order the Poisson Distribution in a French restaurant! ... Read more

Reviews (33)

I'm a Cartoon Guide Addict now...
Have you ever chuckled while reading your mathbook? Ever laughed out loud while crunching numbers? Don't worry--neither had I until I read this book. And any book that makes me smile when I'm doing math has got to be a winner.

Yes, Gonick has done it again. I bought the CG-genetics a while back, and loved it. So when I went hunting for a good 'refresher' stats book, I picked up this one.

I wasn't disappointed. Gonick (et al) has great talent for presenting information in a way that almost fools you into thinking you're not learning, but rather, having fun. And although this book wasn't as "easy" to get into as his Genetics book, I believe it's because I'm less familiar with this subject.

Careful though--as others have mentioned, you can't be fooled into thinking this book is THE way to learn statistics. You have to be pretty comfortable with algebra, and pretty determined to read through the book in order to take anything away from it. And don't try this book as a stand-alone or you'll end up with the same frustration you'd have with a college textbook.

A Good Introduction
"The Cartoon Guide to Statistics" by Larry Gonick and Woollcott Smith was published in 1993. This book is a good introductory level look at Statistics. The authors cover what Statistics is, what the history of the subject is, and a look at some theories, terms, and applications of the subject.

The weakness of the book is that there are a lot of formulas given, and not enough discussion of the formulas, so one would need to use other statistics texts to supplement the material, so this book cannot stand alone in that respect. On the other hand, if one is just trying to get an overview, there is a lot to skip over. The authors do make fun of the formulas, and the amount of math so those that are looking for an overview may enjoy the humorous presentation. There is also a lot to do with the subject that the book covers. It does cover probabilities, but when it comes to distributions it really focuses on Standard Normal distributions. I don't believe it ever mentions Uniform, Poisson, or other types of distributions which most statistic courses do cover.

The best part of the book is the examples, some of which are carried through for several chapters to help the reader better understand the subject. Although, even with the examples they are a bit inconsistent in how complete they are. For example, in one case they started to discuss the use of statistics to compare the salaries of male and female employees in the same job, but they never completed the discussion. The examples of racial bias in jury selection, and the gas mileage comparison of two different types of gas are much better. This is a decent book, but not up to the level of Gonick's excellent "Cartoon History of the Universe" series, and not strong enough to give it more than three stars.

Very funny and cute book. I love it!
If you want to learn complicated things like statistics, but are feeling quite overwhelmed by the complexity, I highly recommend you learn visually from a book like this. Larry has a great sense of humor and is a creative genius.

Zev Saftlas, Author of Motivation That Works: How to Get Motivated and Stay Motivated

Best intro to stats around
I read this book because I had to take a Linear Regression stats class, and I lacked the pre-requisite knowledge of basic statistics. After attempting to skim some of the 800 page intro books in the library, I decided to give this one a try.

It contains everything you need to know about introductory statistics. Some things are a little unclear, but this stems from the fact that the author's did not want to burden the reader with the derivations of the basic equations. So at the expense of some clarity, they cut out a lot of junk that you will never need, probably even if your major is statistics.

So even though you may need to supplement this book with a more detailed book, and even though the cartoons are far from funny, I give this book 5 stars because it is simply the best intro that you will find. You could easily get through an introductory college course with this book alone, and its a shame more courses don't try to do that.

Book Got Me Through College
I am math phobic and taking Statistics in college made me wonder if I was one of those people who "wasn't cut-out for college". But I got this book and it made statistics fun and a lot less intimidating. After college, an interviewer asked me about Bayes Theorum and I immediately pictured the illustration from the book! Recently, while studying for the GMAT, I recalled the fun lessons from the book - especially probability and nailed that section of the test.
This would be great for High School or college students or ANYONE who is intimidated by math or stats. ... Read more

Book Description

Gravetter and Wallnau's proven best-seller offers the straightforward instruction, accuracy, built-in learning aids, and wealth of real-world examples that professors AND students have come to appreciate. The authors integrate applications to ensure that even students with a weak background in mathematics can achieve mastery of statistical concepts. They skillfully demonstrate that having an understanding of statistical procedures will help them not only understand published findings, but also become savvy consumers of information. Known for its exceptional accuracy and examples, this text also has a complete supplements package to support instructors with class preparation and testing. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Gravetter's Statistics book
This is one of the clearest books on introductory Statistics that I have read. Extremely logically written in a straight forward style. If you can't grasp Statistics using this book...try a different pursuit in college. Every concept is precisely explained and one subject builds upon the next. Gravetter provides one example after another in an attempt to hammer the concepts home...and a successful one I might add. This book also provides a solid foundation for the 1st half of an advanced, Stats II course.

This book has saved my life
I am about half way through this book and I actually understand, maybe even a bit excited about statistics. This book is definetly the best math/statisics textbook I have ever used. If you have hidden in fear from math but want to go to grad school, pick up a copy of this and you will not regret it.

A must buy!
This is great book for learning statistics. The best I've seen so far. Statistics is a subject I hate, but this book has given me hope. I know use it as a supplement for other textbooks. It was a book that was written with the student in mind. I am in a class with an awful stats book now, Statistical Methods for Psychology. But, the Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences text will be a permanent fixture on my shelf and I recommend it often. I will continue to look for textbooks written by these guys. Thanks, you made one of my semesters much better.

statistics for the math phobics
OK, here it is: I am a math phobic, have been all my life, as long as I can remember myself! So, when I started studying psychology as a second degree, I was kind of anxious about taking all kinds of statistics courses: it seems that statistics are a major part of any psychology degree, & so it was important for me to learn them well, from the beginning. Well, with this book (which I shopped around for, looking for the best introductory book on the subject) my math-phobia has not disappeared, but is slowly & surely getting smaller & smaller. This is a textbook that guides you, step by step, so you can understand all the basic concepts of statistics, without feeling you're making an effort. Lots of problem-solving & learning checks help, lots of revision at the end of each chapter...the book is organized in an excellent & thoughtful way, perfect for a student who will take the time sto study (it covers almost everything) but who wants to do it in an organized way.

Kudos to these guys!!!
I used an older copy of this book as an undergrad and was asked by a fellow doctoral student what I might recommend for use as a good stats book for the "stat phobic" ... Hands down, I say that THIS is the book to use. I've used thinner stats books that pretend to be cute. But if "cute" is not what you need, and you need to learn the stuff as well as reference the stuff. This is the book for you.

I suppose I ought to update my copy ;-) mine is dog eared!

Need stats? Buy this book to learn. Good stuff! ... Read more

Book Description

Now your students can become intelligent consumers of scientific research, without being overwhelmed by the statistics! Jaccard and Becker's text teaches students the basic skills for analyzing data and helps them become intelligent consumers of scientific information. Praised for its real-life applications, the text tells students when to use a particular statistic, why they should use it, and how the statistic should be computed and interpreted.Because many students, given a set of data, cannot determine where to begin in answering relevant research questions, the authors explicate the issues involved in selecting a statistical test. Each statistical technique is introduced by giving instances where the test is most typically applied followed by an interesting research example (each example is taken from psychology literature). ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An Excellent Introduction
The book is up-to-date and effectively presents the basic concepts. Deals with current power and sphericity concerns. Example SPSS-keyed analyses and APA-format results sections are especially valuable for research training. Uses post-hoc Tukey HSD test. Separate nonparametric chapters. The authors know their material (not always the case with statistics texts) and they provide a solid (higher-level) introduction. Good selection of topics and fairly thorough. Perhaps a bit wordy at times. One of the best available introductions. From a long-time teacher of statistics with no connection to authors.

The Best Introductory Text for Today's Students
Jaccard and Becker's preface says it all:

"Introductory statistics, unlike content areas in the behavioral sciences, does not become dated quickly. Many of the concepts taught ten years ago are still relevant today. So why another text?

....Most introductory statistics texts fail to integrate sufficiently the subject matter of statistics with what students will encounter in the behavioral science journals. A statistics course should not only teach students basic skills for analyzing data but also make them intelligent consumers of scientific information.

....Because of the way chapters and exercises are organized in most texts, students are essentially told which statistical procedure to use on a given set of data. This state of affairs is simply unrealistic. It is just as important to teach students when to use a particular statistic and why it should be used as it is to teach them how to compute and interpret the statistic.

....A common complaint among students is that statistics is irrelevant and boring. This view is fostered, in part, by the tendency of statistic texts to use examples and exercises that are irrelevant and boring. Yet, it is possible to provide interesting applications of statistics (which this text does successfully).

....In the present book, a unifying structure is provided [(1)in contrast with other texts and (2) in order to provide students with conceptual relationships among the various stastical analyses].

....The book emphasizes a conceptual understanding of statistics [rather than the chosen outdated computational emphasis of the vast majority].

....Another unique characteristic of this text is a chapter on research methods.

....Appendixes to several chapters explain in more detail certain advanced concepts referred to in the body of the text [for advanced students].

....[The material covered is systematically thorough, allowing the professor to choose a customized curriculum and providing the student with a tremendous resource for further study and reference long after the course]." (pp. xiii-xvi)

The book triumphs as the most relevant introductory text on the market today. ... Read more

Book Description

Elementary Statistics: A Brief Version is written for students in the beginning statistics course whose mathematical background is limited to basic algebra. The book uses a nontheoretical approach in which concepts are explained intuitively and supported by examples for your student. There are no formal proofs in the book. The applications are general in nature and the exercises include problems from agriculture, biology, business, economics, education, psychology, engineering, medicine, sociology, and computer science. The learning system found in Elementary Statistics: A Brief Version provides your student with a valuable framework in which to learn and apply concepts! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

The best stats book available.
This is by far the best stats book I've found. I actually used this book instead of the one assigned for my graduate course. Everything is explained very clearly from step 1 and on. The book assumes you have very little or no stats knowledge. There are plenty of examples to further clarify each concept, and full explanations are provided. The book is very well-written and the chapters are well connected.

I also found the pictures/graphics extremely helpful, especially in the sections on probability. I can finally make sense of combinations and permutations and other probability concepts.

Also extremely helpful is the way the book explains which formulas to use when, and why they should be used in that instance. This helps to pull everything together and see how many of the concepts relate to one another. I think this is key to understanding stats.

I've gone from fearing stats to actually enjoying it, all because it now makes sense thanks in large part to this book.

Excellent Book - A must have
I have read many statistics books but never one I understand on the first read. This book is for the true beginner. Excellent.

easy step to understand statistics
easy steps approaching to statistics and good examples to practice the text.

Excellent presentations and examples!
This books has great presentations, diagrams, and examples of concepts in elementary statistics and probability. It is thorough, yet easy to read. Students will enjoy examples that they can relate to. ... Read more

Book Description

This is the most widely used mathematical statistics text at the top 200 universities in the United States. Premiere authors Dennis Wackerly, William Mendenhall, and Richard L. Scheaffer present a solid undergraduate foundation in statistical theory while conveying the relevance and importance of the theory in solving practical problems in the real world. The authors' use of practical applications and excellent exercises helps students discover the nature of statistics and understand its essential role in scientific research. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Solid Presentation But Lacking Concision
The sixth edition of Math. Statistics w/ Applications is a solid book with good information. However, the form of presentation was not for me. The authors have chosen an explicative style which tends to be overly wordy.

When I begin to read a chapter, I tend to get frustrated and impatient because they either try to show you all the subtleties at once or give you a long-ass paragraph that can be said with one sentence. Thus, The most important stuff is buried in a mountain of over-whelming text.

I have ditched this book in favor of Ghahramani's "Fundamentals of Probability, Second Edition" for my Math Stat I class.

Best statistics book for econometricians
This book is a book on mathematical statistics and hence goes further than most entry-level statistics books, which mostly deal with business statistics. This book does not reinvent the wheel, but is goes further where other books end. You will find a mathematical explanation and theorems are proved as well. Soms more advanced topics are moment generating functions and power tests. The consequention is that the learning curve is steeper. At my university, econometrics students use this book, and they couldn't have made a better choice. Logically, since econometricians don't have enough on a book with only a minor focus on formulas.

Worst stat book ever
I work as an actuary, and I have passed the first actuarial exam (the calculus and stat exam with a <30% pass ratio). My friend uses this book for her stat class, and I have found it to be a terrible book.

I hope that any teacher reads this, and looks at the book before assigning it to a class.

There are very few examples of problems, very little discussion of theory, and it is structured in a way that does not allow you to easily reference other texts.

If you want a good text for challenging problems and relevant examples, try Hogg and Tanis.

A great book!
This is definitely one of the best introductory statistical books around. The writing is lucid and masterly, and includes a wide variety of topics. The authors have included an abundant number of well-chosen exercises and these cover a wide spectrum showing the application of statistics to the engineering, biological, etc., sciences. My only complaints are that there is not enough on residuals and influence in the chapter on regression; the use of the hat matrix in this context would have been most beneficial, in my opinion. Also I would have very much liked to see the Fisher information in inference and the Smith-Satterthwaite procedure in hypothesis testing included. Nonethless both students and instructors will find the book extremely useful and it gets my highest recommendations!

Three standard deviations from the mean...
As a student in Engineering Science at the University of Toronto who used "Introduction to Mathematical Statistics" by Rice as a textbook for a course on Probability and Statistics, I must say that my life would have been so much easier had I owned a copy of Wackerly's text. It is a concise, easy to follow, practical textbook that covers the material thoroughly while still presenting it in a most digestible form. ... Read more

Book Description

This work brings together, in a ready-access encyclopedic format, theories, methods, applications, and historical background in the statistical sciences. More than 4,000 entries by leading statisticians, mathematicians, educators, and major figures in the development of statistics cover all the principle subfields including probability theory, statistical distribution theory, computational methods, sampling survey methods, decision theory sequential analysis, and multivariable analysis. ... Read more

Book Description

An intuitive, yet precise introduction to probability theory, stochastic processes, and probabilistic models used in science, engineering, economics, and related fields.

The book covers the fundamentals of probability theory (probabilistic models, discrete and continuous random variables, multiple random variables, and limit theorems), which are typically part of a first course on the subject. It also contains, a number of more advanced topics, including transforms, sums of random variables, least squares estimation, the bivariate normal distribution, and a fairly detailed introduction to Bernoulli, Poisson, and Markov processes.

The book strikes a balance between simplicity in exposition and sophistication in analytical reasoning. Some of the more mathematically rigorous analysis is explained intuitively in the text, and is developed in detail (at the level of advanced calculus) in the numerous solved theoretical problems.

This text is being currently used in introductory probability classes at several universities, including M.I.T., Berkeley, and Stanford. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

great book!
Written by two prolific MIT professors, "Introduction to Probability" presents a clean and insightful introduction to probability and stochastic processes. The book is intended for advanced undergraduate and/or beginning graduate students. While many introductory probability texts are dominated by superficial case studies (which in my opinion convey a false sense of confidence about the subject), "Introduction to Probability" promotes deep understanding through clear mathematical writing and thought-provoking examples.

Testimonial: I recently adopted "Introduction to Probability" as the text for a first-year, masters of engineering course on stochastic systems, and it was a great experience. In working with the book, I found that the authors' thoughtful approach really helps to solidify the students' understanding of basic concepts. For example, the text's approach to conditional probability, particularly with its emphasis on sample-space, is so clear that several students (even the TA) came to me afterward saying that, prior to reading the book, they never had a clear understanding of what the formulas actually mean. From an instructor's perspective, "Introduction to Probability" is easy to use. It is accessible to students with diverse backgrounds, and it is also well-balanced, with lots of intuitive/motivating discussion in the main body of each chapter and advanced concepts in extended end-of-the chapter problems. The authors support the text by making available a large amount of supplementary material on the web, including supplementary exercises (suitable for homework or exams) and lecture notes from their introductory probability course at MIT. I highly recommend "Introduction to Probability" to anyone preparing to teach an introductory course on stochastic systems, probability, and stochastic processes.

The odds are you'll love this book
Probabilities are a powerful way of understanding the world and doing science. Trouble is, understanding probabilities is not easy: it takes math, insight, and a fresh way of thinking. Worse, the stuff is so useful in so many contexts that its expositions are often obscured by the intended applications.

I recently found myself looking at several probability books to give a recommendation to a friend. This book (by two well-known MIT professors of Electrical Engineering) is a wonderful treatment in terms of its style (simple informal explanations, motivating discussions, frequent notes of a historical/philosophical nature); its selection of topics (the basics, mainly, usually from the most useful perspective); its rigor and accuracy; its reasonable brevity; its rather conventional point of view (contrast it, for example, with the very interesting recent book by E. Jaynes); and its humor. ... Read more

Book Description

This classic book provides a rigorous introduction to basic probability theory and statistical inference that is motivated by interesting, relevant applications. It assumes readers have a background in calculus, and offers a unique balance of theory and methodology.Chapter topics cover an introduction to statistics and data analysis, probability, random variables and probability distributions, mathematical expectation, some discrete probability distributions, some continuous probability distributions, functions of random variables, fundamental sampling distributions and data descriptions, one- and two-sample estimation problems, one- and two-sample tests of hypotheses, simple linear regression and correlation, multiple linear regression and certain nonlinear regression models, one factor experiments: general, factorial experiments (two or more factors), 2k factorial experiments and fractions, nonparametric statistics, and statistical quality control.For individuals trying to apply statistical concepts to real-life, and analyze and interpret data. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Good book for those who know what they're doing
I really enjoy using this as a reference book when I need to look something up about inference. Everything in the book is highlighted well and gives clear and concise answer. If you're a straight A student in Math, there should be nothing confusing about this text.

Worked a lot better for me than the others
I thought this was a pretty good text for an introduction to statistics with a modicum of calculus (I used the 5th edition). I am a biologist and had taken statistics without calculus (VERY cookbook approach the first time through) so maybe knowing where the math was eventually taking me was the difference. I am very (brutally) applied in my interest in statistics (use it daily to model fish populations, estimate critter abundance, etc.) so I could see where I would not agree with the mathematician who said it killed the beauty of the subject (although I am not gifted enough in math to see the beauty of statistics; I honestly would like to be). Also I did cover the text in two classes (1st up through calculating a confidence interval, 2nd on the general linear model) so that may have made a difference as well - if the others were forced to march through all of the material in the book in 18 weeks. I notice that a lot of the reviewers are computer scientists (ones in my class hated the subject matter - I was not sure why it was a required course for them anyway) or mathematicians. Anyone else out there from the natural or physical sciences (e.g., biology, chemistry, geology) that had experience with this book? Finally - I don't recall the plethora of errata that the others refer to - although I had previously heard this complaint about earlier editions of this book.

Buy Hayter instead
Not worth the paper it's printed on or the ink used to print...poor trees! =(

This is not a great book...
I am a math major currently taking probability in my last year of college in NYC. I don't like this book!! The examples in the chapters make sense... but many of the exercises at the end of each section are not fair (hehe)... you need to make a lot of conclusions and jumps about what you read in the chapter that I am not able to make on my own. If the chapters were more in-depth or more detailed, then things would be different. But I feel like the chapters give examples that are much too simple compared to the exercises you are asked to do on your own. For instance, in the second chapter there is a section on permutations and combinations and all that good stuff... it was all good... but then when I got to the exercises at the end of the section, I found that there was no way I could have answered many of them without any previous knowledge on the subject (of which I had none.) There is no way that I could ever use this book to teach myself... you really need a good teacher or someone who understands the topic to help you (a lot!) if this is your first try at probability. I am a straight A student in math, so I feel that my beliefs on this book are pretty credible... and it seems that I am in good company!!!

This is a difficult book from which to teach yourself
I'm a second year computer science student taking a course on probability, and this is the book we are using. Why, I don't know, because it's not a very good book. I'm not a note-taker, and have a difficult time paying attention in math classes, so I usually teach myself from the book. With a 3.6 GPA, I'd say it usually works. Not so with this book.

This book lacks sufficient examples and the definitions and explanations of theorems are confusing. To its credit, it has odd answers in the back, but that's standard for math books. However, it lacks any answers to the review exercises at the end of each chapter, making the review exercises nearly worthless. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Used in Graduate Class on Probability and Random Processes
I used this book for a graduate class in Probaility and Random Processes and we covered every chapter. I gave the book three stars based on other probability books I have used, but compared to other engineering books I would rate it lower.

I feel main problem with the book is the examples not very helpful in solving the 100+ problems that accompany each chapter. Most of the examples were just useless explanations graphs. The book also seems to gloss over some of the important concepts needed to solve the homework problems. The only homework problems that I found useful were the MATLAB examples. I would recommend doing these problems even if they are not assigned.

The book also does a poor job covering applications, especially in the later chapters on random processes. I would have been interested in more signal processing and communications applications, the main reason I took a course on probability and random processes.

As far a background for a person using this book, I would recommend the person be graduate student with a solid math background.

What a terrible book
I am a graduate student using this book in a class. I would really like to warn other people from using it.

The book describes everything with a lot of examples. As a result of this you do not get a basic understanding, but rather some examples that you can adapt and use for a problem that you have to solve.

It is like learning that a wheel is turning because you might turn it with your hand, rather than because you are applying a torque to it. Or that a lamp is turned on because you might hit the switch, rather than because a current flows through it.

For some reason everything has to be described with CDFs instead of PDFs in the book. It seems like PDFs are something that is difficult to imagine for the author.

I once had a teacher in a class, and a book containing a lot of examples like this one. He claimed that he could write everything the book contained on 2 pages - He was right!! I think the same thing could be done with this book.

Do not choose this book. It is highly unrecommended.

I can't believe something like this even exists!
This book is just god awful. I think probablity theory is a very fascinating subject, however, I don't think this is a good book to learn it from.

Where do I begin:

-The biggest grip I have with this book is the problem set. The problems in this book are, literally, just plain hard. The author expects you to do problems,using the techniques they used in proving an actual theorem! I'm not talking about using the actual theorem, but the actual steps they used. I'm an undergrad in a graduate course, and most of the graduate students aren't even doing well on the homework assignments. I consider myself a pretty decent student. I was able to learn DSP using the Oppenheim book(with the aid of a teacher's solution manual of course). The problems in this book are harder than the problems in Oppenheim's DSP book(and I have a teachers solution manual for this prob. book). The bottomline is that 80-100 problems per chapter won't do anyone any good if they can't solve those problems.

-The author's notation is extremely weird, confusing, and downright bad.

-I just have the strangest feeling that the author is trying to make the students,whom are using the text, feel like they're stupid.

-This book is nine years old. I think the author should rewrite the text from scratch.

-My instructor is literally terrible, so I'm going through a lot of hell in this course.

-And finally, the author, when explaining the theory, uses alot of tedious reasoning and formulas when doing certain theorems. For example, when he's explaining the concept of a bernoulli distribution, the author uses the indicator function to explain the concept. This is not even needed to explain this concept(I have checked this several books, and this was not done), and it's a bit tedious and pointless to include it in the theory.

-My communication systems teacher told our class last semester, that learning from enigneering books is not a good way to learn material. This is all because the authors like to show off their intellectual skill and nothing more. They usually forget to include problems by the time of publishing, and have to delay the release of the book to include problems. And what do they include, diffcult problems, which are really not needed to learn introductory concepts.

Useful, non-rigorous reference
I used this book in a sophomore-level probability course for electrical engineers and I found the book a bit confusing at the time. The notation is somewhat awkward and examples are interleaved throughout general concepts, making it difficult to discern key ideas.

During my doctoral studies, I gained a different perspective. I consistently found the book to be a valuable starting point for many concepts and I now find the examples a quick way to brush up on elementary principles.

However, Leon-Garcia doesn't give a thorough approach to probability theory (there are essentially no theorems) and avoids set theory almost entirely. To really put my teeth into something, I would have to track down a more advanced text for any particular concept I was interested in. Basically, Leon-Garcia tries to seperate "Probability and Random Processes" from rigorous mathematics.... something similar to eating fat-free cheesecake.

so so book
I used this textbook for a junior level class. Frankly, although the book is good initially, the end of chapter problems are way too hard, especially in chapters 3,4,6 and 7. Also, much of the book is formula, which is a bit too much for undergrads. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

daunting, very duanting
This book is one of the tomes of probability theory. The material covered is not for the faint of heart though. The text explains things as do most graduate level math texts, in proofs and theory.

what is a title?
This is a GREAT book.
Unfortunately, I lost mine.
I wanted to buy volume 1, third edition, to replace the lost book but I got volume 2, second edition. Because volume 1 is SO GREAT book, I decided to keep volume 2 as well. How can be sure I ordered the needed one?

A Reference in Probability Theory
Although people often recommend K.L. Chung at our math department as an introduction to probability theory, i think that Feller is just another view of the problem. If you prefer a concise writing style then Chung is better. On the other hand, Feller's books are full of examples so that you cannot go through this book without having an accurate picture of the historical developments of probability theory and its many applications (even if sometimes applications are driving the need for theory...). This is anyway something you must have read if you want to get an intuitive understanding of probability theory.

Whatever your preferred writing style is, Feller is probably a "must-read" if you're involved on probability theory, just because of its importance in the literature, not because you like it. Maths are not just about formalism, they're also a matter of culture.

great treatment of difficult topics
This is the book we called Feller Volume II in graduate school. We used it to sharpen our intuition about probability. Feller was a master at explaining difficult things in simple ways. This includes the waiting time paradox and Benford's laws. For structure and rigor we looked elsewhere, Chung and/or Neveu. But Feller's books brought a joy and love for the subject. No statistician or probabilist should be without a copy on his shelf!

challenging book on probability theory
Will Feller died before I first started reading his work. We used volume II of these two volumes in my graduate course on probability. My Professor Persi Diaconis used Neveu's calculus of probability for the axiomatic treatment. We also consulted Chung's text. Feller Volume II was used to challenge our intuition and provoke our interest. It did that with the waiting time paradox and Benford's law and many other interesting and difficult things to calculate. Feller explained ideas well, taking an intuitive approach rather than a rigorous mathematical one. Feller was one of the great probabilists. He was famous for coming up with general conditions (the Lindeberg-Feller conditions) for the central limit theorem. Volume I deals with the many important discrete probability distributions and the associated combinatorics while Volume II deals with continuous distributions.

Both volumes provide interesting and provocative material on probability and it is worthwhile for every statistician and probabilist to have copies on his or her shelf. ... Read more

Book Description

In the numbers explosion all around us in our modern-day dealings, the buzzword is data, as in, “Do you have any data to support your claim?” “The data supported the original hypothesis that . . .” and “The data bear this out. . . .” But the field of statistics is not just about data. Statistics is the entire process involved in gathering evidence to answer questions about the world, in cases where that evidence happens to be numerical data.

Statistics For Dummies is for everyone who wants to sort through and evaluate the incredible amount of statistical information that comes to them on a daily basis. (You know the stuff: charts, graphs, tables, as well as headlines that talk about the results of the latest poll, survey, experiment, or other scientific study.) This book arms you with the ability to decipher and make important decisions about statistical results, being ever aware of the ways in which people can mislead you with statistics. Get the inside scoop on number-crunching nuances, plus insight into how you can

• Determine the odds
• Calculate a standard score
• Find the margin of error
• Recognize the impact of polls
• Establish criteria for a good survey
• Make informed decisions about experiments

This down-to-earth reference is chock-full of real examples from real sources that are relevant to your everyday life: from the latest medical breakthroughs, crime studies, and population trends to surveys on Internet dating, cell phone use, and the worst cars of the millennium. Statistics For Dummies departs from traditional statistics texts, references, supplement books, and study guides in the following ways:

• Practical and intuitive explanations of statistical concepts, ideas, techniques, formulas, and calculations.
• Clear and concise step-by-step procedures that intuitively explain how to work through statistics problems.
• Upfront and honest answers to your questions like, “What does this really mean?” and “When and how I will ever use this?”

Chances are, Statistics For Dummies will be your No. 1 resource for discovering how numerical data figures into your corner of the universe. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

It's just okay
A reasonable overview of the subject. Go down to your local community college, buy a $15 Texas Instrument ti-30x-II calculator, go on line and pull down a ti-30x-II pdf file for free and REALLY learn what you're looking at. Plus you get college credit for passing. "Stats for dummies" reminds me of a MBA in 12 hours course I once took. Oh yeah, you might have to invest some time using excel spreadsheets if the stats course is business related.

What Statistics for Dummies is About
Statistics for Dummies would be useful in a statistics class, but it is also easily accessible to the general public. The book contains a wide range of examples for any topic in the introductory statistics syllabus, as well as step-by-step explanations of all calculations needed. The book is also very useful for getting clear cut, intuitive explanations of statistical ideas. The index is a quick way to find whatever you are looking for.

Statistics for Dummies
This author is great, and the book has helped me tremendously! There are tons of problems in the book, and the author walks us step by step through the calculations. If you want to understand statistics, I would recommend this book.

More of a professional level
Deborah Rumsey has obviously written this book for the professional because there are no examples of any kind to be found in the book. If your looking for a book that shows examples of how to work the formulas for statistics then I highly recommend Shaum's Statistics third edition. Statistics for Dummies is a real disappointment to the dummies series of books. ... Read more

Book Description

Here is a much-needed professional book that will instruct readers in the many newmethodologies now at their disposal to make the best use of longitudinal data. This book explains how to select an appropriate method given a research question, including how to use both individual growth modeling and survival analysis. Throughout the chapters, the authors employ many cases and examples from a variety of disciplines, covering multilevel models, curvilinear and discontinuous change, in addition to discrete-time hazard models, continuous-time event occurrence, and Cox regression models. Using Longitudinal Data is a unique contribution to the literature on research methods and will be useful to a wide range of behavioral and social science researchers. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great if you really want to do longitudinal data analysis
One of the great features of this book is that it is addressed to the empirical researcher and it really tells you how to conduct good data-analysis with longitudinal data. It doesn't push one particular piece of software, either, but uses a variety of different software packages. The book is really easy to read, and clearly explained -- and, there's so much in it!

Best thing since sliced bread!
This is a great book, it tells you in a straightforward way how to analyze your longitudinal data to answer questions of critical importance in the social sciences. It's not wedded to one particular piece of software, as many books on statistical topics are, but uses examples of real data and different software (HLM, MLwiN, SAS, Stata) to conduct the analyses. An absolute must for the researcher who collects longitudinal data. ... Read more

Book Description

Statistics for the Utterly Confused is your user-friendly introduction to elementary statistics, designed especially for non-math majors

Required courses in statistics are cause for alarm among more than 500,000 undergraduates in such disciplines as nursing, allied health, pre-law, pre-medicine, business administration, and criminal justice. This super-accessible book demystifies the dreaded subject for non-math majors.

Statistics for the Utterly Confusedprovides a logical, step-by-step approach to introductory statistics, stripping away confusing material and clarifying key concepts without long, theoretical discussion and includes:

• Handy icons throughout the text offer easy visual aids
• 500 self-testing questions
• Technology Corner sections explain the latest software
• Provides more than 200 examples and solved problems

Reviews (29)

Statistics for the Utterly Confused
I am a student at Morehead State University and Business Statistics is one of the most difficult classes in my course requirements until I discovered the book, Statistics for the Utterly Confused. The layout of the book was very thorough and easy to read. I truly appreciated the examples given throughout each chapter. The 'quick tips' and 'its a wrap' sections of the book helped me make sure that I understood the key points that were discussed! I would advise anyone who is having a difficult time with statistics to definitely purchase this book. It was a great investment that helped out tremendously!

A Great Investment for Business Stats Students
I was "utterly confused" until I purchased this book. However, when I followed the instructions on how to complete problems provided by Dr. Jaisingh I gained a greater understanding of statistics. Dr. Jaisingh did a wonderful job of putting this book together. It is easy to read and the problems are almost self-explanatory. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who has to take Business Statistics. You did a great job Dr. Jaisingh, I was very impressed.

Recommended
For me, more revelant than "Stats for Dummies", the Utterly Confused stats book is more focused toward business stats. I found the Cliffs book a bit stiff, Dummies too loose and Utterly confused just about right. At least it helped decipher the Business Stats text book I was trying to wrap my arms around.

There's no substitute for a Stats course, and the utterly confused stats book should help ease one into the lingo and nomenclature rather than suffer a head-on crash with syllabus and curriculum.

Don't take statistics without it.
I took a statistics correspondence course for credit. The study guide made no sense to me. I finally got online and found this book. I was hesitant, because like the computer instructions you get, Statistic instructors think they are dummying it down for us but are only dummying it down for them. I was pleasantly surprised. I loved the quesions at the end. You are able to apply the knowledge immediately and get feedback. I received an A in the course, and not from the expensive study guide that I bought that was supposed to help me pass.
Any average person who is required to take statistics should get this book. If it helped me, it will help anyone. Thanks Dr. Jaisingh

Simple and Concise
I bought the book looking for something to assist in prepping people for 6 Sigma training in the statistics of analyze phase. Many people have been out of school for a long time or never got into the statistics of 6 sigma before. The goal was to find a primer to help them over the hump before the training.

I found this book to he helpful to me, and have to test it on someone less familar with statistics.

What I liked about it is that it covered 90% of the topics I needed, ANOVA, multi-variate statistics, DOE, and non-parametrics are not included. It did provide a clear, concise description of the topics in a manner that should not lose non-mathematicans. It is not rigorous like a text book, but does a descent job of explaining things in lay language while attempting to bridge the gap between lay language and more correct useage.

My search was not exhustive, but I like this book, and I know it helped one co-worker understand the basics in her college stats course.

Where I found it a little weak is in describing the mathematical notations used (summation signs, etc.). It could have been a little stronger at translating the statistics in to practical useage in the real world. ... Read more

Book Description

Updated to reflect the latest technological advances in statistical tools, this solid text presents ideas and concepts more clearly for students who have little or no background in statistics. The Tenth Edition retains all the elements and style that educators nationwide have come to expect—clear prose, excellent problems and precise presentation of mathematics involved—while eliminating some of the computational drudgery. The seamless integration of technology gives professors multiple teaching options.The volume outlines all aspects of summarizing data, possibilities and probabilities, rules of probability, expectations and decisions, distribution, sampling, problems of estimation, tests of hypotheses, analysis of variance, regression, correlation and nonparametric tests.For Statistics professionals and others using elementary statistics. ... Read more

Book Description

The last decade has brought dramatic changes in the way that researchers analyze economic and financial time series. This book synthesizes these recent advances and makes them accessible to first-year graduate students. James Hamilton provides the first adequate text-book treatments of important innovations such as vector autoregressions, generalized method of moments, the economic and statistical consequences of unit roots, time-varying variances, and nonlinear time series models. In addition, he presents basic tools for analyzing dynamic systems (including linear representations, autocovariance generating functions, spectral analysis, and the Kalman filter) in a way that integrates economic theory with the practical difficulties of analyzing and interpreting real-world data. Time Series Analysis fills an important need for a textbook that integrates economic theory, econometrics, and new results.

The book is intended to provide students and researchers with a self-contained survey of time series analysis. It starts from first principles and should be readily accessible to any beginning graduate student, while it is also intended to serve as a reference book for researchers. ... Read more

Reviews (18)

An excellent bridge to advanced econometrics
As an economist,before taking PhD lectures, I used to think that this book was too complicated. It is not for undergraduate students. Once you acquire some level in mathematics, this book becomes the best reference for time series econometricians. It covers a wide array of themes, the text is clear and understandable, even if, from time to time, you get lost in the mathematical explanations (but it's not the usual). I particularly liked the non-stationary chapters. The spectral analysis is a little bit confusing and there is no non-parametric section. I think this is one of the best books in the field. Mathematicians will find it extremely clear and graduate economists understandable. "Time series Analysis" it's an unavoidable book for those seeking to understand specialised papers.

excellent general textbook on time-series econometrics
This is an excellent introduction to time-series econometrics. It covers huge amount of material without going deep-deep into details. It assumes knowledge of matrix algebra, probability and statistical inference at the level that is expected from graduate students in economics program. The book discusses stationary and non-stationary time series, univariate and multivariate models, deterministic trends and many other topics. It has an excelent and intuitive introduction to spectral analysis. The book is easy to read and is oriented toward students, so I would say, that in general, it's a very friendly textbook and it's a great source for references. But for those who still find it difficult to read or for applied researches looking for quick recipes I would recommend to combine reading of Hamilton's book with Enders's "Applied Econometric Time Series"

this book rules
I bought this book when i studied econometrics in grad school. now i work at an investment bank, and i use the book practically every day. the derivations (which rely solely on calculus and linear algebra) are always clear, and most of the subjects are covered thoroughly but concisely. using this book, for example, i learned gmm in one day and implemented it on the next day. moreover, most of the chapters are self-contained (if you already know a bit about regression analysis), so you won't have to read a bunch of preliminary stuff before you get to what you need to learn.

btw, the author seems like a nice guy, too. one time, i had a question about his treatment of the kalman filter, and he actually responded to my email.