Book Description

Chris Spatz's best-selling statistics text relies on examples from the social and behavioral sciences, education, nursing/allied health, and business fields--as well as examples from everyday life--to teach students statistical reasoning and problem solving. Praised for his clear explanations, Spatz shows students how to start with a data set, identify the questions it poses, determine and carry out statistical procedures, and using plain English, tell the story the data reveal. A free CD packaged with the book provides objective questions and answers, additional problems and answers, and portals to websites with additional help. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A student-friendly book to help you succeed in statistics!
Tales of Distribution is fun, well written and easy to read. Tales of Distribution is a college textbook worth reading if you need to put statistics at your command! Spats'z style is helpful to the reader and down to earth. This is a heavy-duty treatment of the topic; however, interesting examples of how to use statistics in day-to-day life makes this topic come alive. If you read this book, you will never be intimidated by statistics in your lifetime.

The author's discussion of "Rationale of ANOVA" and "Hypothesis Testing" is excellent. Frequent use of algebraic explanation is joined with graphic explanations to help the reader visualize the author's points. "Work Problems" at the end of each chapter show imagination and creativity. The author seems to have a sincere desire to help the reader at every turn along their journey of statistical discovery. The author also seems to have privilege insight into the reader's mind. He anticipates what the reader is thinking, and serves up a helping of practical advice at the exact perfect moment.

As a market-research practitioner, I found the book to be very refreshing and enjoyable to read. I read it on my summer vacation! My daughter purchased the book as the required text for her statistics class at UCLA. At the end of her class she had planned to sell the book back to the UCLA bookstore. After looking at the book for 60 seconds, I said to her "No, don't sell this book. This is great book. Keep it." To which she replied; "But Dad, I need the money. You can keep it if you pay me for it." To which I replied; "Haven't I paid for this book once already? If I pay you for it now, that would be the second time I bought the same book." ... Read more

Book Description

KEY BENEFIT: A procedural software manual for Advanced Statistics courses. KEY TOPICS: Students new to statistical analysis and SPSS as well as seasoned users will find this manual incredibly valuable, as it provides tips, warnings, and examples that aid data analyzation. While the underlying statistical concepts are reviewed, the emphasis is on practical matters: understanding the analyses that can be performed using SPSS. It offers suggestions and concentrates on topics that arise when analyzing real data for presentations, reports, and dissertations. The accompanying CD-ROM contains many of the datasets used in the book. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This one is a gem
"Entertaining statistics" may seem like an oxymoron, but this book succeeds remarkably well, with practical, lively, and focused discussions of commonly used statistical procedures. Parts of it are even quite funny, an unexpected bonus. A wide range of statistical procedures are covered, from basic descriptive statistics to complex models. Numerous handy tips appear throughout the book, helping the reader avoid common statistical pitfalls. For the researcher doing statistics who needs a statistics guide that is comprehensive, down to earth, and easy to follow, this book is a fabulous resource. ... Read more

Book Description

S is a powerful environment for the statistical and graphical analysis of data. It provides the tools to implement many statistical ideas that have been made possible by the widespread availability of workstations having good graphics and computational capabilities. This book is a guide to using S environments to perform statistical analyses and provides both an introduction to the use of S and a course in modern statistical methods. Implementations of S are available commercially in S-PLUS(R) workstations and as the Open Source R for a wide range of computer systems. The aim of this book is to show how to use S as a powerful and graphical data analysis system. Readers are assumed to have a basic grounding in statistics, and so the book is intended for would-be users of S-PLUS or R and both students and researchers using statistics. Throughout, the emphasis is on presenting practical problems and full analyses of real data sets. Many of the methods discussed are state of the art approaches to topics such as linear, nonlinear and smooth regression models, tree-based methods, multivariate analysis, pattern recognition, survival analysis, time series and spatial statistics. Throughout modern techniques such as robust methods, non-parametric smoothing and bootstrapping are used where appropriate. This fourth edition is intended for users of S-PLUS 6.0 or R 1.5.0 or later. A substantial change from the third edition is updating for the current versions of S-PLUS and adding coverage of R. The introductory material has been rewritten to emphasis the import, export and manipulation of data. Increased computational power allows even more computer-intensive methods to be used, and methods such as GLMMs, MARS, SOM and support vector machines are considered. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Excellent
A worthy update. The authors are matter-of-fact and straightforward. I appreciate their terse style, the broad coverage, and the many examples. It's also good that they're starting to split programming material off into its own monograph (S Programming), making this book all the more appropriate for learning, although not quite beginning, statisticians. Their considerable contribution in software is also very much appreciated.

I do not agree at all with the reviewer who chided them for including R; I say so much the better for it. I very much hope that they will continue to do so.

An excellent application of statistics with S
I am an experienced S-Plus user. I found the 4th ed. of the popular book very helpful (and practical). The authors added many libraries to the packaged S-Plus, which is very generous. I would give it a five-star ranking, but I found the various comments on R really disturbing (I suspect most practioners use S-Plus instead of R). Maybe the authors should put everything related to R into separated boxes (or in a separate chapter). Overall, it's a great book and I would like to recommend it to anyone interested in computational statistics. Note: Basic knowledge of S and some advanced training statistics are assumed. Good for graduate students in statistics/finance, or experienced statisticians/financial engineers. For those without sufficient training in statistics, try the S-Plus Guide to Statistics I & II first. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Delivers On Its Promises
This textbook iswell-conceived and well-executed. The authors have a strong background in science as well as a keen interest in making technical subjects accessible to a broad audience. They have succeeded in presenting statistics with a minimum of mathematics. Emphasis is placed upon the application of these concepts to real life situations taken from news sources, the internet and individual experiences. The graphics, sidebars, focus sections and case studies are timely, relevant, engaging, lucidly written and enlightening. A one-page epilog provides a nice summary statement to the entire textbook. A glossary, index, answer key , appendices and suggestions for further reading are also included.
This is an excellent textbook for a general education student whose career would not require the direct use of statistical tools. None of the usual tables are discussed or present in this textbook, but all of the main topicsare treatedin a thorough and thought-provoking fashion. The authors' discussion of correlation and causality is especially good, although their definition ofcausality in the glossary as " the relationship present when one variable is a cause of another " is circular. Instead, the authors should reiterate their assertion from the main text that a "cause"is a "physical mechanism" based upon a "physical model" which is generally acceptable as a scientific explanation. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A remarkable range of examples for the idea of visual thinking, with beautifully printed pages. A real treat for all who reason andlearn by means of images. -- Rudolf Arnheim ... Read more

Reviews (34)

A superb, inspiring book!
Envisioning Information is Tufte's best work. It is a catalog of world class information design examples, culled by the author. He has collected examples from sources as diverse as Gallileo's observations of Saturn, a 3D map of a Japanese shrine, a visual "proof" of Pythagoras' theorem, color studies by the artist Joseph Albers, and a New York train schedule.

This is not a "how to" book, but rather a group of inspiring examples showing any would be information designer the concepts behind the execution of these superb examples.The concepts are painstakingly argued and illustrated. Tufte is obsessed with quality - the book is printed on 100% rag paper using old fashioned lead type because he believes this yields the highest quality results. One of the best books I have ever read when it comes to visual design!

A Tour De Fource of Information Design
To me, this is Tufte's best book, although they are all really good. Although its visually gorgeous, its not a coffee table book to just flip through. You have to be willing to spend time with it, and if you do the rewards are tremendous.

Tufte presents a collection of some the best examples of information design ever invented, and some of the worst examples. And then he goes into the underlying principles that make the great ones sing out.

This book will be really helpful to any web page designer, UI designers, statisticians, cartographers, scientists, or anyone concerned with presenting dense information in a clear way.

There is a chapter on presenting multiple dimensional data on a flat, 2D paper that all by itself is worth the price of the book. Then there's the chapter on "Small Multiples" which presents wonderful examples of how to show patterns and changes. But then there's the chapter on layering of information, so the key pieces of data appear first, and the less relevant ones reveal themselves later. And on and on and on. Its just a great book.

To add to it, Tufte is obsessed with quality like nobody else I can think of in the book business. Its printed on 100% rag paper using real lead type because he thinks that all other methods are inferior. Which means the book is costly to make, but its of heirloom quality.

The Second Coming of the Prophet of Presentation
In "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information", Edward Tufte put forth a theory of graphical excellence which taught his disciples how to present complex data crisply, clearly, and concisely while preserving data integrity.

With "Envisioning Information", Tufte tackles a bolder objective: displaying multi-dimensional data effectively within the two-dimensional space of paper or screen.

To do this, Tufte employs his successful formula from "Visual Display"---outlining the general concepts of his theory and illustrating these principles with many and varied examples.

Tufte's approach to "escaping Flatland" (as he calls it) is simple but richly-illustrated:

- Employing the concept of micro/macro readings to add resolution to data displays, conveying more information in a smaller space

- Using layering and separation to foster comprehension of multivariate data

- Utilizing small multiples to convey change over time

- Leveraging color to convey information

- Weaving narratives of space and time

The effect upon the reader is staggering and transformative. Tufte has revised and extended his theory of graphical excellence with a handful of simple yet powerful techniques for improving our presentation graphics.

Anyone involved in graphics design or in the communication of complex information should have this book on his shelf---it is simply too valuable to keep having to borrow it from your public library.

Don't buy it until you see it. You may be disappointed.
I know that I am a contrarian here but... I didn't like the book at all - I was initially so excited to see the book, but when I finally did see it, I was very disappointed. I recommend that you actually see the book before buying it. You may be disappointed too.

Everyone doing UI design or implementation should read this
As in all Tufte books, this is beautifully presented and wonderfully content-filled. In particular, you'll learn:
- All about the tasteful use of color in the design of interfaces
- How to maximize data visibility in interfaces, as opposed to the widgets, frames, and borders around the data

The only bad side is that some of the chapters end just when you feel like they're about to wrap up in a statement of a best practice, leaving you to sit around and solve the puzzle yourself. While I'm all in favor of mental exercise, I would've liked to at least have a solution to double-check against. ... Read more

Book Description

Every aspect of Elementary Statistics has been carefully crafted to help readers learn statistics. The Third Edition features many updates and revisions that place increased emphasis on interpretation of results and critical thinking over calculations.Chapter topics include probability, discrete probability distributions, normal probability distributions, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, correlation and regression, chi-square tests and the f-distribution, and nonparametric tests.For readers who want a comprehensive, step-by-step, flexible introduction to statistics. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The best of three books I've used so Far for AP Statistics
This text includes all topics necessary for success on the AP exam - I am completing my first year of teaching with this text, and have found it to be an excellent book. The supplemental resource binder for teachers is excellent - it contains sample quizzes, and a short synopsis of what to expect from students encountering this new information for the first time. Lots of activity - based problems and simulations - My hopes for the next edition? The book cover seems to contain some laminate or plastic covering which starts to flake off after much use - a bit annoying- otherwise a very good book.

Wonderful preparation for the AP Stats test!
This is my second year teaching Advanced Placement Statistics. I greatly appreciated having a clear stats book that followed the AP curriculum and included the Texas Instruments TI-83 calculator built in to the examples and problems. Most AP Stats students do not own statistical software and rely on their TI-83. This book is a thorough introduction to statistics text written for the bright high school student with a TI-83. The problems come from real data giving the students the sense they are doing real statistics and not just crunching numbers. All of the students from my class passed the AP test. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Outstanding Textbook
I teach statistics at 2 colleges. I use this book. It is outstanding in its clarity and mathematical depth. Students with strong math backgrounds will appreciate the fine logic developed by this book as it explains statistics. The word problems are outstanding and relevant to applications across broad fields of interests. The examples are explained thoroughly. This book is very well priced for the student who is struggling to pay tuition, fees, etc. Highly recommend this book to all serious students.

Not good
The examples are not clear and complete enough. Even my Stats professor said he didn't like the way the book was made. I know Stats involves a lot of word problems but the book is uncessarilly wordy.

Almost Useless
I had to have this book for a college intro to statistics class. I'm not very math inclined, and this book was no help. The 'examples' are not clear and easy to follow.

One of the things that I did find helpful in this book is when they list the steps to use an equation in text, without the numbers. Fortunately, the professor was able explain the equations.

If you are trying to teach yourself statistics:
1.) get a life :c)
2.) don't get this book

If you are getting this as a textbook for school:
hope you have a good math prof. ... Read more

Book Description

Most data sets collected by researchers are multivariate, and in the majority of cases the variables need to be examined simultaneously to get the most informative results. This requires the use of one or other of the many methods of multivariate analysis, and the use of a suitable software package such as S-PLUS or R.

In this book the core multivariate methodology is covered along with some basic theory for each method described. The necessary R and S-PLUS code is given for each analysis in the book, with any differences between the two highlighted. A website with all the datasets and code used in the book can be found at www*******.

Graduate students, and advanced undergraduates on applied statistics courses, especially those in the social sciences, will find this book invaluable in their work, and it will also be useful to researchers outside of statistics who need to deal with the complexities of multivariate data in their work.

Brian Everitt is Emeritus Professor of Statistics, King?s College, London.

Reviews (3)

Can't beat it
...This book is the source of all you need. It's hard going at times, but so's the subject. The book's 15 years old and remains the best guide to the analysis of correlated data. It's a reference book, one I value as much as a good dictionary. To use it as a text would be misguided unless the instruction was aimed at a sophisticated audience.

Best MRC Book Ever
I agree with the previous reviewer that there are times when the exposition in the book gets a bit intense; but c'mon! We're dealing with statistics. You gotta sweat a bit. That's when learning happens. In my opinion the book is extremely clearly written. And although you may have to re-read a few sentences a few times, the basic tools for understanding most every major aspect of MRC is embedded in the text. In sum, this was a great book that I read as a 2nd-year graduate student in psychology. Unlike the first reviewer, I turned to this text when I got confused during the course lectures!

MRC Analysis---good book overall
Cohen and Cohen's MRC analysis book is well versed and easy to understand for someone that is familiar with MRC terminology, however, for first year graduate students, the text is very equivocal. The book is lacking ample illustrations of complex problems, leaving students to rely on outside sources. Also, the book uses unfamiliar symbols that do not correspond with other MRC books, which intensifies the confusion level of the students even more.

Overall, the text is a great addition to a statistical library, and this reviewer recommends it, in spite of being a sub-par book for first year graduate students. ... Read more

Book Description

Powerful software often comes, unfortunately, with an overwhelming amount of documentation. As a leading statistics software package, SAS is no exception. Its manuals comprise well over 10,000 pages and can intimidate, or at least bewilder, all but the most experienced users.A Handbook of Statistical Analyses using SAS, Second Edition comes to the rescue. Fully revised to reflect SAS Version 8.1, it gives a concise, straightforward description of how to conduct a range of statistical analyses. The authors have updated and expanded every chapter in this new edition, and have incorporated a significant amount of new material. The book now contains more graphical material, more and better data sets within each chapter, more exercises, and more statistical background for each method. Completely new topics include the following:"Data description and simple inference for categorical variables"Generalized linear models "Longitudinal data: Two new chapters discuss simple approaches, graphs, summary measure, and random effect modelsResearcher or student, new user or veteran, you will welcome this self-contained guide to the latest version of SAS. With its clear examples and numerous exercises, A Handbook of Statistical Analyses using SAS, Second Edition is not only a valuable reference, but also forms the basis for introductory courses on either SAS or applied statistics at any level, from undergraduate to professional. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Good If you know your Statistics
This is a good book if you know statistical analysis. Do you know what to use, when and where? If you do, this book is good because if you are going to use SAS for analysis you have got to know your statistics. What good would FORTRAN be if you didn't know Algebra? You need both.

Very readable and practical
This book is very well written. Each topic is presented with an interesting example, including discussion. None of the topics are presented in great depth, so for example, this is not the book to use for learning factor analysis, or cluster analysis, etc. The real strength of the book is that it shows how to do the analysis using SAS in a clear and concise way. I would recommend this book highly for anyone who would like to get started using SAS.

Good overview of implementations and methods
This book is a good overview of how to implement in SAS some of the statistical methods you've probably already read about. I had done a lot of reading on factor analysis and clustering for my dissertation and needed a way to implement these methods in SAS. This book explains each method, then shows how to implement it using SAS. The data sets are from "The Handbook of Small Data Sets", which I got from my local university library. As I am a computer scientist and not a statistician, I found this book very helpful in putting together **the idea** of a particular statistical technique with the actual **implementation** of that technique. I have the first edition of this book also, and the second edition is much improved (especially the chapters on clustering and factor analysis).

statistical applications in SAS explained with examples
Brian Everitt is the author of several very well-written statistical texts. Among them he has written a number that show how to implement statistical analyses usimg statistical software packages. This second edition of "A Handbook of Statistical Analyses using SAS" he has coauthored with Geoff Der.

As a SAS user, I find this book very handy along with other similar texts that I have on the use of SAS. What is particularly good about this book is that it serves as a guide to the use of various SAS procedures and also as an illustration of appropriate statistical approaches to real applications using SAS.

It starts out with a nice introduction to the SAS prrogramming language and its syntax and progresses through simple descriptive statistics to categorical data analysis to regression and analysis of variance and then on to more advanced topics, including survival analysis, logistic regression, generalized linear models,longitudinal data analysis, principle components, factor analysis and cluster analysis. Appendices provide SAS MACROs and SAS solutions to exercises in the text.

What is particularly good about this book, that may set it apart from some of the others, is the expert statistical advice about the implementation and interpretation of results in SAS. They provide excellent scholarly references to the statistical literature to support their advice. As an example, I particularly liked their discussion of Type I and Type III sum of squares in the analysis of variance. They give a clear explanation of what each means and when they are equivalent and when they are different. In addition, they present their own view as to which is the appropriate one to use in given situations and support their view with quotes from other researchers. Opposing positions are also mentioned and referenced. ... Read more

Book Description

Interest Rate Models Theory and Practice In implementing mathematical models for pricing interest rate derivatives one has to address a number of practical issues such as the choice of a satisfactory model, the calibration to market data, the implementation of efficient routines, and so on. This book aims both at explaining rigorously how models work in theory and at suggesting how to implement them for concrete pricing. This is an area that is rarely covered by books on mathematical finance. The book is meant both to help quantitative analysts and advanced traders price and hedge with a sound theoretical apparatus, and to encourage academics to develop a feeling for the practical problems in the interest rate market that can be solved with the use of relatively advanced tools of mathematics and stochastic calculus in particular. Advanced undergraduate students, graduate students and researchers should benefit from seeing how mathematics can be used in concrete financial problems. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Best book on interest rate models
This is the best book available on interest rate models. Very detailed. Much more focused and readable than Rebonato's book. More pragmatic and explicit than Musiela and Rutkowski. Not as theoretical as Hunt and Kennedy. James and Webber also looks very good, but I'm not that familiar with it. All other books have only bits and pieces on interest rates.

The best book I have read on the subject
With all the due respect to the other authors I would say that if one is interested in a good theoretical book whihc is also good on the implementation side then the book of Brigo and Mercurion is definetly the best book I have ever read on the subject.

Anyone interested in implementing the LMM/BGM/MSS model in practice is well advised to read it.

I would just say that this is certainly a must have in the field.

New stuff and nice overview: hard to beat!
In the late nineties I went through Brigo's innovative work on stochastic nonlinear filtering with differential geometry techniques. I was favorably impressed by results and style, particularly in his dissertation and in his 'geometry in present day science' very readable overview. Interesting results are found and nicely told with accurate - but not pointlessly complicated - advanced mathematics for the problems at hand, I reasoned.

I've followed a similar path from control to finance, and having worked with interest rate models, I couldn't help but order this Brigo-Mercurio book. I had high expectations 'cause these two guys are working in a bank on the real thing.

Sure enough I'm not disappointed.

1-factor models are handled with great care, a ton of formulas and recipes are given. I've never seen this kind of analysis of pricing with Gaussian 1-f models. The new upgrade of the CIR model is interesting and accurate. "CIR++" is now my favorite 1-f model. I like the treatment of lognormal 1-f models and the explanation of Monte Carlo and trees -- the flow-chart for Bermudan swaptions is crystal clear! Plots of market implied structures and volatility calibration are useful additions.

The chapter on 2-f extensions has one of the best discussions on volatility, and two tons of useful formulas/recipes. Two dimensional trees!

The HJM chapter size is OK. I agree - the useful models embedded in HJM are short rate models and market models.

Market models - these three chapters alone are worth the book. You'll find yourself nodding as you read the guided tour. They make it look easy all the time. The exposition is focused, clear, intuitive, detailed. There's also new stuff, just check the calibration discussion! Smile modeling begins with a brilliant tour and ends with Brigo-Mercurio's new approach - the mixing dynamics - deserving a whole chapter if expanded.

The detailed explanation on products is a much welcome original addition. Cross currency derivatives!

Quotes - as in Brigo's old work - are a pleasant diversion while reading. The 500 and more pages are a treat given the competitive price.

Still there's room for improvements - more "CIR2++"! Something on 3-f models. Historical estimation of the correlation matrix and low-rank optimized approximations. Expand smile modeling! More hedging. Something on structured products. Cross currency libor model. chapter 9 - other interest rate models - sounds out of place and can be suppressed for other things.

This book rings true and has useful teachings for students, academics and practitioners. Although it requires some background in stochastic calculus, it's hard to beat on the pricing front. Kudos to Brigo and Mercurio! It only harms there aren't enough books like this.

Nicely written overview of interest rate models
This recent book, written by two Italian "quants" Mercurio & Brigo, gives a nice and accessible overview of interest rate models which is a compromise between the practitioner viewpoint, expressed for ex. in Rebonato's book "Interet Rate option models"
and the theoretical viewpoint such as the one in Musiela & Rutkowski.
The authors, themselves PhDs in quantitative finance/ applied maths, wrote this book while working as quants in an Italian bank and this first hand contact with the market gave them a
practical view on the subject which markes this book very interesting.

The book contains a "rational" catalogue of models used in practice ( as opposed to models which are impossible to implement!).

In contrast with academic books on interest rate modeling which deal with HJM formulation, there is a lot of emphasis here on LIBOR and Swap market models
(BGM -Jamshidian models) which reflects the current market practice. This is a positive point since there are not many books with details on implementing and using these "market models".

Part II: Interest rate models in practice is particularly useful because it deals with implementation and calibration which, as any practitioner knows, are important and usually delicate issues.
However calibration issues are dealt with somewhat lightly, especially recent developments on modeling cap/swaption smiles
are not included here.

This book can also be used for a graduate level/PhD course on interest rate models.

There are a lot of numerical examples in the book and mathematics is kept to the necessary level while keeping the
approach both rigorous and understandable.

Overall, it is one of the best books written on the subject.
I highly recommend it to PhD students, quants and researchers interested in this field.

Well written and useful book
In my humble opinion, this is the best book on Interest Rate modeling out there. The writing style is clear and focused and the appendices are fantastic. The book is rigorous but someone with some background in Stochastic Calculus will find it easy to follow. If you need refresher, dont worry the authors have you covered, see the appendix on Stochastic Calculus. Not an introductory book. Very exciting book. ... Read more

Book Description

This user-friendly introduction to the mathematics of probability and statistics (for readers with a background in calculus) uses numerous applications--drawn from biology, education, economics, engineering, environmental studies, exercise science, health science, manufacturing, opinion polls, psychology, sociology, and sports--to help explain and motivate the concepts. A review of selected mathematical techniques is included, and an accompanying CD-ROM contains many of the figures (many animated), and the data included in the examples and exercises (stored in both Minitab compatible format and ASCII). Empirical and Probability Distributions. Probability. Discrete Distributions. Continuous Distributions. Multivariable Distributions. Sampling Distribution Theory. Importance of Understanding Variability. Estimation. Tests of Statistical Hypotheses. Theory of Statistical Inference. Quality Improvement Through Statistical Methods. For anyone interested in the Mathematics of Probability and Statistics.

Reviews (15)

mediocre text not worth the money
I've never owned any other texts on probability and statistics, but this one is no good. The underlying mathematical concepts are not difficult, but they are presented in a very poor manner. I often have to read a section several times to understand how the authors move from the theory to a specific examples, they seem to leave out steps that aren't intuitive to the first time student (me). Then, once I think I undestand the ideas sufficiently to move to the exercises at the end of the section, I find that they often ask the reader to solve problems the likes of which were barely (or sometimes not at all) explained in the text... its VERY aggrevating. This text, combined with a terrible Prof. has made Prob-Stat a real nightmare ...if you want to safe yourself a lot of time and frustration, get another book, its almost garaunteed to be better.....

The WORST prob & stats book !!
I feel much better after reading other reviews of this book - I am not the only one or the reason for this . This book is very deficient . . Especially for undergraduate learners .

not fit for teaching
While studying statistics with this book I thougth I lack a gene or something because I couldn't make much sense of the subject. Today I know that the book is conceptually wrong.

The book is basically stuck in the 1930's, ignoring major breakthroughs by Shannon, Kolmogorov and others. Fundamental concepts like entropy, individual randomness and typicallity are completely missing.

Furthermore, the book is heavily biased towards hypothesis testing, with little mentioning of Bayesian statistics.

From a pedagogic point of view it must be said that statistical concepts emerged historically and are better understood when placed in the context of the original problems. This book does not do that at all.

average textbook, but sketchy in places
For the most part this textbook provided a good foundation for the study of probability and statistics. Some of the examples lacked a necessary level of detail and left me wondering how they got from point A to point B (especially in the second half of the text). Of course, unless you're just buying this book for self knowledge you probably don't have a choice on whether or not to buy it.

a (yawn) mechanical approach to mathematics
I studied the first 8 chapters of this book instead of attending the undergraduate lecture. This was a mistake. Tanis & Hoggs present probability and statistics, an otherwise interesting topic, in the most mechanical way imaginable. There is no reference (that I can recall) to any underlying mathematical ideas or questions, nor to the problems which originially prompted Poisson, Bernoulli, Gauss, etc. to inquire about the nature of "randomness" in physical events. The authors seem to suppose that their examples demonstrate such things by proxy. This book may make a decent reference for advanced students, but should not be used to teach those seeing prob & stat for the first time... that is, unless, you want it to also be their last. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Simple & Straightforward
Probability is a hard subject to understand for many and I am no exception. There is no one book that can present the subject matter in clear and precise way. This Schaum's outline as the title suggests is a good outline. It sums up the various topics and like other Schaum's texts solves a huge number of relevent problems. But it cannot be used as a substitute for a text. I cannot suggest any one text (Papoulis, Garcia, Gharamani etc.)either because I haven't found a satisfactory one so far. I have taken probability at different levels of education and the one thing that I have come to realize is that an understanding of the subject only develops over time. There is no magic solution except that you have be it for a while until your mind begins to think along the same lines. But I'd definitely suggest this book as a supplement to any text. In fact, call it a mandatory supplement.

Wonderful Book
Why can't textbooks be like this? I want to learn and actually do the problems. Textbooks seem to have obscure problems that have little explanation. This book has real problems professors assign, and this book demonstrates how to solve these problems! I want to do well in my classes, and this book helps me do just that.

Very clear and compact
I had to use a book written by the professor teaching me probability. His book being very poor quality I decided to try this one instead. With success, it is a very clear and compact book. The only thing I found is that it does not cover enough distributions, and that there are quite a few typos.

better than books many times its price
I purchased around $200 worth of textbooks on Probability and Random Processes for a graduate level course I took. Of those books, this one got the most use. It summed up topics concisely and provided adequate examples with enough detail to actually show me how to get an answer. If you are getting regular textbooks on this topic, it would be well worth your while to pay the extra small price for this handy guide. It will be well worth the money.

Increasing the probability of solving probability problems
After being out of school for ten years, this book proved to be essential for my M.S.E.E. course in Random Signals. This book concisely summed my undergraduate engineering Signals class with solved problems. In addition, the solved problems acted as a guideline for my Master's class. I felt that I could not have gotten through my class without this book.

The reason why I ordered this book in the first place was the advice of my professor. My professor is a Ph.D. in the telecommunications workplace, acting as an adjunct professor. This working Ph.D. continues to use his well-worn Schaum's as a reference. ... Read more

Book Description

Downloadable data sets:
http://www.soe.ku.edu/faculty/Salkind/stats_fpwhs/

Click 'Additional Materials' for downloadable sample chapters

The bestselling text Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics teaches an often intimidating and difficult subject in a way that is informative, personable, and clear. Researchers and students who find themselves uncomfortable with the analysis portion of their work will appreciate this book’s unhurried pace and thorough, friendly presentation.

Salkind takes students through various statistical procedures, beginning with correlations and graphical representation of data and ending with inferential techniques and analysis of variance. In addition, there is coverage of SPSS (and data sets for hands-on experience), and a review of more advanced statistical techniques, such as reliability, validity, introductory non-parametric statistics, and more. Pedagogical features include sidebars offering additional technical information about the topic and set-off points that reinforce major themes. Finally, questions to chapter exercises and a complete glossary are located at the back of the book.

Throughout the book, Salkind offers readers:

- Difficulty Rating Index for each chapter’s material

- Tips for doing and thinking about a statistical technique

- Top Ten for everything from the best ways to create a graph to the mosteffective techniques for data collection

- Tech Talk boxes for readers who want additional details and commentary on statistical procedures

- Things to Remember offer readers reviews and reminders of how material presented earlier relates to a technique being presented

- Steps that break statistical techniques down into a clear sequence of procedures

- SPSS Tips for executing each major statistical technique –

- Time to Practice exercises at the end of each chapter, followed by complete solutions to each problem

- Appendices contain an introduction to SPSS as well as data sets (also available online) used in the completion of chapter exercises and end-of-chapter problems

Praise for the First Edition

"I liked its humorous approach, which indeed helps to reduce statistical anxiety. The design of the book is inviting and relaxing, which is a plus. The writing style is great and the presentation is appropriate for my students. A fun and well-written book, it is easy to read and use, and presents statistics in a user-friendly way. . . . I would recommend it for sure."

--Dr. Minjuan Wang, Assistant Professor of Educational Technology, San Diego State University

"Salkind’s book is in a class by itself. It is easily the best book of its kind that I have come across. I enthusiastically recommend it for any one interested in the subject, and even (and especially) for those who aren’t!" --Professor Russ Shafer-Landau, University of Wisconsin

"Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics really makes students learn and enjoy statistics and research in general. Students especially like the Ten Commandments and Internet sites." --Professor Valerie Janesick, School of Education, Roosevelt University

"Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics is definitely the right book for people who have to overcome that familiar anxious feeling when opening a standard statistics book and who having finally managed to do so are still not able to make much sense of it all. The book by Salkind is easy and pleasant to read and one that hardly needs any pre-knowledge of the field to be able to follow the author’s train of thoughts. Salkind has managed to bring statistics home to people who hate statistics, or thought they did." --From a review appearing in Statistical Methods in Medical Research (Arnold Publications) Dr. Andrea Winkler, Maudsley and Bethlem Hospital, London, U.K.

New to the Second Edition:

- Downloadable practice data sets

- New chapter on factorial analysis of variance

- New chapter on reliability and validity

- New section on effect size

- An entirely revised test bank instructor's manual

Reviews (2)

Very helpful BUT....
This book was great at explaining the principles behind the math. However-- THERE WERE HUGE MISTAKES!!! The formula for the correlation coefficient for example, had a misplaced parenthetical that changed the formula. As a rookie in this area I was in tears trying to figure out my homework. This was not the only error, but it certainly was the worst!!!

Otherwise, the examples make it easy to understand the concepts of statistics, and certainly made it so I was able to ace the course. I just wish it hadn't had so many errors.

At last...a book that students can follow!
This is an easy to follow, well written book that students find useful. I have used it for teaching undergraduate research and statistics and as a supplement for graduate level research. It is written on a level so that almost all students can follow it and it provides excellent examples. ... Read more

Book Description

In a family study of breast cancer, epidemiologists in Southern California increase the power for detecting a gene-environment interaction. In Gambia, a study helps a vaccination program reduce the incidence of Hepatitis B carriage. Archaeologists in Austria place a Bronze Age site in its true temporal location on the calendar scale. And in France, researchers map a rare disease with relatively little variation.Each of these studies applied Markov chain Monte Carlo methods to produce more accurate and inclusive results. General state-space Markov chain theory has seen several developments that have made it both more accessible and more powerful to the general statistician. Markov Chain Monte Carlo in Practice introduces MCMC methods and their applications, providing some theoretical background as well. The authors are researchers who have made key contributions in the recent development of MCMC methodology and its application. Considering the broad audience, the editors emphasize practice rather than theory, keeping the technical content to a minimum. The examples range from the simplest application, Gibbs sampling, to more complex applications. The first chapter contains enough information to allow the reader to start applying MCMC in a basic way. The following chapters cover main issues, important concepts and results, techniques for implementing MCMC, improving its performance, assessing model adequacy, choosing between models, and applications and their domains.Markov Chain Monte Carlo in Practice is a thorough, clear introduction to the methodology and applications of this simple idea with enormous potential. It shows the importance of MCMC in real applications, such as archaeology, astronomy, biostatistics, genetics, epidemiology, and image analysis, and provides an excellent base for MCMC to be applied to other fields as well. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Applications for Experts and Interested Laymen
I have a graduate level physics and mathematics background and found that the real-world applications discussed in this book enhanced my understanding of Monte Carlo models. While I knew the math cold, this thought provoking book helped me make further model enhancements and allowances for the ambiguities in the models.

Monte Carlo experts who want to apply their knowlege to finance should also read: "Options, Futures, and Other Derivatives (5th Edition) by John Hull; and "Credit Derivatives" (2nd Edition) by Janet Tavakoli.

great collection of articles on applications
Gilks, Richardson and Spiegelhalter edited this marvelous collection of papers on applications of Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods. There has been a big payoff for Bayesians as this method has been a breakthrough for dealing with flexible prior distributions. Most (but not all) of the articles deal with Bayesian applications. The editors themselves start out with an introductory chapter that covers the basic ideas and sets the stage for the articles to come. They provide many references including several of the articles in this volume.

The list of authors is quite impressive and many interesting examples are presented. The editors themselves contribute to other chapters. Spiegelhalter and Gilks co-authored a chapter on a Hepatitis B case study with Best and Inskip. Gilks has a chapter on full conditional distributions and co-authors a chapter on strategies for improving the MCMC algorithms. Richardson contributes a chapter on measurement error.

George and McCulloch deal with the use of Gibbs sampling to choose variables in a model based on a Bayesian approach. Raftery also has a chapter on Bayesian approaches in hypothesis testing and model selection. Green covers image analysis. There are many others (25 chapters in all). This is a great reference for anyone interested in MCMC methods.

The BUGS (Bayesian inference Using Gibbs Sampling)software was developed by Spiegelhalter, Thomas, Best and Gilks to implement Gibbs sampling in a variety of contexts. They illustrate its use along with the diagnostic software CODA in the application in Chapter 2. It is also mentioned in various other chapters in the book. There is currently a version called winBUGS which is designed for Windows operating systems.

Before jumping into the use of MCMC a user would be well advised to study this book.

Very Useful.
We recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning MCMC methods. Contains a excellent selection of practical examples. Christopher Gordon and Steve Hirschowitz ... Read more

Book Description

A condensed and more streamlined version of the very popular and widely used Understandable Statistics, 7/e, this book offers instructors an effective solution to teaching the essentials of statistics within a more limited time frame. Designed to help students overcome their apprehension about statistics, Understanding Basic Statistics is a thorough, yet approachable text that provides plenty of guidance and informal advice demonstrating the links between statistics and the world. To reinforce its real-world approach, the book integrates graphing technology as well as real-life data selected from a variety of sources including journals, periodicals, newspapers and the Internet, and from such fields as business, medicine, archaeology, and consumer economics. The Third Edition includes several new features that enhance learning and simplify instructor preparation. A robust set of technology resources, including a Video/DVD series, provides students with valuable reinforcement.

• New! HM StatPass Student CD-ROM, packaged FREE with every new student text, features the ComputerStat statistical software program, data sets, and a tutorial program.
• New! HM ClassPrep with HM Testing Version 6.0 CD-ROM provides instructors with access to both lecture aids and testing software in one convenient tool.
• New! Focus Points found at the beginning of each section list the various concepts that will be covered in the section.
• New! Tech Notes provide general tips on appropriate use of the TI-83 Plus, Minitab, and Excel. They also incorporate display screens from each of these technologies to help students work through a statistical problem and better understand the solution. Denoted by an icon, Tech Notes appear in section examples, when appropriate.
• New! Redesigned Chapter Openers offer new pedagogical features to further support learning: a brief Chapter Table of Contents, new photos, and a set of pertinent Preview Questions with section references. and new photos. Chapter-opening material maintains the book's emphasis on real world applications with quotes, commentary, and updated Chapter Focus Problems.
• New! Labels for Examples, Guided Exercises, End-of-Section Exercises, and Review Problems help students identify the focus or topic of an exercise.
• New! A removable Formula Card containing "Frequently Used Formulas" organized by chapter, areas of standard normal distribution, and values generated by Minitab version 9.2, is automatically packaged with new texts.
• Thought-provoking Viewpoint boxes placed in most exercise sets focus on real-world situations and help to humanize statistics. Many of the Viewpoints refer students to relevant Internet sites for further exploration.
• Special chapter-ending projects include Data Highlights: Group Projects, which offer practice in collaborative discussion, analysis, and problem solving; and Linking Concepts: Writing Projects, which challenge students to extend their thinking and examine statistical concepts from a broader perspective, usually in essay form.
• Detailed Examples walk students through the process of selecting and applying appropriate procedures to solve problems, and Guided Exercises follow selected examples to give students the opportunity to work with new concepts before more are presented. Completely worked out solutions are situated beside each exercise for immediate reinforcement.
• Using Technology Sections include real-world data from a variety of disciplines and can be solved using a computer software package or a graphing calculator. Screen displays from Minitab, the TI-83, Excel, and ComputerStat are also included, along with helpful instructions.
• Section Exercises, featuring updated real data problems, require students to use all the new concepts mastered in the preceding section. Key steps to solutions of odd-numbered problems are contained in the back of the text. Comprehensive Chapter Review Problems cover each topic introduced in the chapter and often synthesize material and concepts from several sections.

Reviews (2)

Text for Math 157 at Central Virginia Community College
This was a great book for Intro Statistics.It was for a Distance learning class.

Textbook
This is actually a book that is used as textbook at Gaston College in Dallas, North Carolina. ... Read more

Amazon.com

With Visual Explanations, Edward R. Tufte adds a third volume to his indispensable series on information display. The first, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, which focuses on charts and graphs that display numerical information, virtually defined the field. The second, Envisioning Information, explores similar territory but with an emphasis on maps and cartography. Visual Explanations centers on dynamic data--information that changes over time. (Tufte has described the three books as being about, respectively, "pictures of numbers, pictures of nouns, and pictures of verbs.")

Like its predecessors, Visual Explanations is both intellectually stimulating and beautiful to behold. Tufte, a self-publisher, takes extraordinary pains with design and production. The book ranges through a variety of topics, including the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger (which could have been prevented, Tufte argues, by better information display on the part of the rocket's engineers), magic tricks, a cholera epidemic in 19th-century London, and the principle of using "the smallest effective difference" to display distinctions in data. Throughout, Tufte presents ideas with crystalline clarity and illustrates them in exquisitely rendered samples. ... Read more

Reviews (31)

examples where pictures really tell 10,000 words
In this third book by Tufte on graphics, he provides great examples through history where good pictures conveyed important information to decision makers and bad graphics left uncetainty and indecision. A great success story is the identification of the source of the cholera epidemic in London in the 1850s. With regard to the Challenger Space Shuttle, Tufte suggests that one good picture may have convinced the NASA engineers of the need to avoid launching at low temperatures. Great pictures, great examples and great advice are found throughout the book. You may not believe that graphs can be used to answer all scientific questions but Tufte will convince you that they are important and must be done right!

Delightful and Insightful
Tufte's third book concentrates on the communication of notions of change and difference, such as an explaination of processes or sequences of events.

One of the many delighful aspects of this book is the diverse and intriging sources of examples, ranging from 19th century bookplates and 20th century art to information kiosks and scientific visualisation. For me the most memorable section was his contrasting the visual displays presented to NASA advising them to abort the disasterous Challanger launch with Frost's investigation into the colera epidemic in 19th-century London. It might sound vague hand waving, but Tufte presents his ideas with incredible clarity and insight and his conclusions are applicable to a wide range of fields, from computer user interface designs to powerpoint presentations and scientific analysis of data.

You can probably guess I really enjoyed this book; as well as being engaging and informative it is beautifully written and stunningly designed. It's philisophic approach will not immediately appeal to everyone, but I enthusiasticly recommend it as essential reading for anyone who needs to communicate complex ideas visually.

For those of you interested in this subject area, I also recommend "Information Architects", edited by Richard Saul Wurman, which although more graphic design oriented has numerous excellent examples of the design processes behind good visual communication

Don't buy until you SEE it! You will be disappointed.
This book appeared fascinating to me. The book reviews appeared fascinating to me. But when I actually saw all of the pages inside I was really disappointed. Don't buy this one until you see it - you just may be disappointed too.

Learn how human information capacity affects your designs
An amazing book! While I'm not sure that it's worth giving up shelf space for, it's more than worth borrowing from your local library and reading.

The biggest things I pulled out of this were around information density and the capacities that humans have. This book provided me with a framework for looking at mediums of display to the user and to better understand how I can choose how much data and how to present it to best allow them to reason around it.

The examples are also beautifully produced and masterfully composed. The book itself is an amazing artifact!

Near the end, he talks about 'confections' and, while it was an interesting section, it was the one section of the book that it was difficult to pull out prescriptive guidance from.

Indispensable and Revealing Insights
Edward R. Tufte again raises the bar both on his scholarly treatment of how we portray visual information and on how books of value ought to me made.

His third book on information design, Visual Explanation: Images and Quantities, Evidence and Narrative is, in his words, "about pictures of verbs, the representation of mechanism and motion, process and dynamics, causes and effects, explanation and narrative."

Within this book, Mr. Tufte first tackles tough, fundamental issues related to quantity, scale, and magnitude. Determining if a visual representation is honest or accurate may, at first, not seem a vital skill, but Mr. Tufte clearly shows how data and information can be distorted or manipulated and offers sharp observations to help one see more clearly what is presented.

He addresses methods of presenting and analyzing data, using the now classic medical investigative work of John Snow and the fatal flawed decision making that resulting in the Challenger tragedy, to build a steady, compelling argument that there are right and wrong ways to show data.

A chapter on magic and designing disinformation is full of anecdotes, examples, and illustrations about the how's and why's of masking content and diverting attention.

Perhaps my favorite chapter is The Smallest Effective Difference, a challenging but insightful primer on using subtle but effective visual distinctions to create compelling visual information.

The long chapter about visual parallelism treats a complex subject by offering a plethora of examples, all explained with a terse elegance. Students of typography will take a special interest in Mr. Tufte's treatment of letterforms.

How we use and react to multiple images and how to effectively use multiples to evoke repetition, change, pattern, and surprise form the basis of the next chapter. Mr. Tufte again reminds readers that good design must take into account how, when, and even where information will be used.

The final chapter covers what Mr. Tufte has termed visual confections, that is an assembly of myriad visual events to convey a story, make comparisons, merge the real and imaginary. Digital artists should switch off their Macintosh computers until they have studied carefully this chapter, replete with superb illustrations and laser-intense commentary.

Mr. Tufte self-publishes his books because no commercial press would indulge his demands for perfection. His books are wonderful not just because of the information he presents but also because they represent the craft of bookmaking. The printing, binding, the acid-free paper, inks, the arrangement of words and images---these books are to treasure when so much is disposable and fleeting. ... Read more

Book Description

The text is not written for those students who will become statisticians; it is written for future decision makers in business. The focus and goal is to make students better quantitative decision makers.

The concepts of statistics are presented in the setting of business decision making through the use of many real world examples, real business data and applications.

Student Study Guide:  Designed to be used alongside the text book, this invaluable step-by-step study guide walks students through the text as they read it and work problems while supporting the decision making approach. ... Read more