Renowned for its clear prose and no-nonsense emphasis on core concepts, Statistics covers fundamentals using real examples to illustrate the techniques.
The Fourth Edition has been carefully revised and updated to reflect current data. |
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About the Author
David Freedman received his B.Sc. from McGill and his Ph.D. from Princeton. He has worked as a consultant for the City of San Francisco, the County of Los Angeles, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. Department of Justice. He has written several previous books and numerous technical papers. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and teaches at the University of California, Berkeley.
Robert Pisani received his B.A. and Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley. His research interests include probability models of market-price behavior and the statistical valuation of financial instruments.
Roger Purves received his B.A. at the University of British Columbia and his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, where he currently teaches. His research interests are in the mathematical foundations of probability theory.
Robert Pisani received his B.A. and Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley. His research interests include probability models of market-price behavior and the statistical valuation of financial instruments.
Roger Purves received his B.A. at the University of British Columbia and his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, where he currently teaches. His research interests are in the mathematical foundations of probability theory.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I used the first edition of this book in a class I took at Berkeley back in 1989. I again turned to it for a self-study refresher recently and found it's intuitive style quite refreshing and even kinda fun. This book teaches the concepts without all the noise and distraction of more recent books that try to throw in every new technique and software application they can think of. This book is a classic in the field, on a level with Sylvanus Thompson's Calculus Made Easy. No, it won't be the last stats book you ever buy but it will get you up to speed fast and allow you to work much faster through more advanced texts and with a deeper understanding for the theory.
I do have one complaint. I like math and at a few points I wanted to tell the authors to quit teasing me and just give me the equation already. For example, they take several sections of text to introduce correlation and linear regression before finally introducing the actual linear equation. Maybe it's better to introduce it that way, I'm not a teacher. Others have mentioned the lack of standard nomenclature in this book but I can't see how that would be more than a minor inconvenience moving to a more advanced text. Another reviewer mentioned Statistics Unplugged by Sally Caldwell. I also have that book and though it has more standard nomenclature, I found it to be "wordy" and not as intuitive as the book in this review.
I do have one complaint. I like math and at a few points I wanted to tell the authors to quit teasing me and just give me the equation already. For example, they take several sections of text to introduce correlation and linear regression before finally introducing the actual linear equation. Maybe it's better to introduce it that way, I'm not a teacher. Others have mentioned the lack of standard nomenclature in this book but I can't see how that would be more than a minor inconvenience moving to a more advanced text. Another reviewer mentioned Statistics Unplugged by Sally Caldwell. I also have that book and though it has more standard nomenclature, I found it to be "wordy" and not as intuitive as the book in this review.
64 of 77 people found the following review helpful
By G. Pfeil
Format:Hardcover
I am not a statistics major, nor do I tend to excel in mathematics, but I am capable of achieving if I put enough energy into a subject...that wasn't the case with my stat class last semester, which used this textbook.
This book takes the role of a friendly teacher who dumbs down the material so we "not-so-mathy" students can understand what's going on. The problem, however, is that this book speaks in riddles, teaches in examples, stories, and fake conversations between mathematicians of the past, and doesn't spell out in any clear way what the method is for solving certain types of questions. Also, after using this text for Stat I, I moved on to take Stat II and was pretty lost. In Stat II, they use "scary" language such as p, q, n, instead of "big number" "small number" and "box" (which is used in this text). I found it was much easier for my mind to grasp the consistency and methodology of statistics when using a different, more "advanced" texbook.
Stat can be a very difficult thing to understand when you're treated like a baby. Even my TAs hated this textbook, which kind of says a lot (mainly that a lot of students are confused, and can't get any help from outside tutors who don't speak the pseudo-stat language of this book)
I would not recommend this text to anyone. If you're thinking about taking a Stat class where this text is used, you'd be better off waiting a semester until you can enroll in a class where the teacher values actually learning statistical language.
This book takes the role of a friendly teacher who dumbs down the material so we "not-so-mathy" students can understand what's going on. The problem, however, is that this book speaks in riddles, teaches in examples, stories, and fake conversations between mathematicians of the past, and doesn't spell out in any clear way what the method is for solving certain types of questions. Also, after using this text for Stat I, I moved on to take Stat II and was pretty lost. In Stat II, they use "scary" language such as p, q, n, instead of "big number" "small number" and "box" (which is used in this text). I found it was much easier for my mind to grasp the consistency and methodology of statistics when using a different, more "advanced" texbook.
Stat can be a very difficult thing to understand when you're treated like a baby. Even my TAs hated this textbook, which kind of says a lot (mainly that a lot of students are confused, and can't get any help from outside tutors who don't speak the pseudo-stat language of this book)
I would not recommend this text to anyone. If you're thinking about taking a Stat class where this text is used, you'd be better off waiting a semester until you can enroll in a class where the teacher values actually learning statistical language.
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful
By IsleofGough
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
When I initially looked at this textbook, I was disappointed that it has the least extensive number of statistical tests described. There is only a passing mention of Fisher's exact test, no logistic regression, etc. However the examples are by far the best I've seen in any textbook (even non statistics books) and they are very helpful in understanding statistical pitfalls. They make you think more than most advanced texts. The clarity of writing is superb. Since many statistical problems are due to the setup and reasoning of studies, rather than picking the wrong text, this textbook will go far to enable the reader to more critically understand the methodology of studies.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By Mark Lee
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I'm not a "math person," and was compelled to take an Introductory Statistics course as the final math class toward my BA. I approached the course with preconceptions after hearing horror stories from other humanities folks about failure, shipwreck, plagues of locusts, and thoughts of suicide.
This is one of the top half-dozen texts of my entire college career.
Not only do the authors make statistics accessible and even fun, they do so in a consistently smart style that simultaneously simplifies statistical concepts while not pandering in the quality of language overall, or occasions for clever asides. While many professors will end up using modern calculators for the problems, the text bases its lessons on the use of tables (normal, t, and chi-square). I found myself following both the professor and, electively, the text for a more full understanding of "old school" methods. Each chapter has enough embedded problems (with answers at the end of the text) that the reviews and other materials provided by my professor were often redundant. I wish I had access to the answers for each chapter review questions, but that can hardly be a criticism in my "student" copy of the text.
I'll be revisiting this book long after I've ceased being a student. It has helped me have more informed attitudes about statistical products in general, which I suppose was a point of the course and the text.
This is one of the top half-dozen texts of my entire college career.
Not only do the authors make statistics accessible and even fun, they do so in a consistently smart style that simultaneously simplifies statistical concepts while not pandering in the quality of language overall, or occasions for clever asides. While many professors will end up using modern calculators for the problems, the text bases its lessons on the use of tables (normal, t, and chi-square). I found myself following both the professor and, electively, the text for a more full understanding of "old school" methods. Each chapter has enough embedded problems (with answers at the end of the text) that the reviews and other materials provided by my professor were often redundant. I wish I had access to the answers for each chapter review questions, but that can hardly be a criticism in my "student" copy of the text.
I'll be revisiting this book long after I've ceased being a student. It has helped me have more informed attitudes about statistical products in general, which I suppose was a point of the course and the text.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This text was used in an Introductory Statistics course I took at Western Michigan University. I found it to be a delightful book that was designed for students with no or little background in statistics. It attempts to take everyday events and show how statistics can be used to make inferences from them. The book does have worked out problems in the back and answers for selected problems in the text.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
nice!
I needed this for a class i am in this semester and the book came quick and looked pretty won but was still good!
Published 4 months ago by Courtney
3.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect state but too long wait to receive it
I would have rated this purchase 5 stars, because the book is really in good conditions, but I've waited 2 months to receive the book, I think it's long.
Published 5 months ago by Luppi79
5.0 out of 5 stars
In Nice Condition.
I was really surprised how in good condition the book was it basically looks brand new. The book also arrived on time which was a plus for me.
Published 6 months ago by A. Smith
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very good
You can use this book for self learning tooThis is not an advanced book but it is still very helpful. .The book is a classic. Read more
Published 17 months ago by A. Moreno
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not a very good text
I do mathematics tutoring, and I've worked with dozens of students taking introductory statistics courses. Read more
Published 24 months ago by Brian Clare
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good book
This is a good book. It is in perfect condition and the book itself is a good teaching tool to basic statistics. I can't complain at all. Thanks Amazon
Published on February 18, 2011 by KDavey
4.0 out of 5 stars
thanks!
I needed this book really bad for this class and it came and it was in awesome condition minus a few scribblings on a few pages. Read more
Published on February 2, 2011 by Achowchow
5.0 out of 5 stars
Accessible and instructive
This is a great book for learning basic statistics and the scientific method without getting too bogged down in higher math. Read more
Published on September 9, 2010 by Enjolras
5.0 out of 5 stars
textbook use
brand new, fast shipping
contents are really good for students taking statistic class and economics
contents are really good for students taking statistic class and economics
Published on February 17, 2010 by Fan-yun Yu
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