Statistics Today
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During the 20th century, the creation of precise instruments for agricultural research, public health concerns (epidemiology, biostatistics, etc.), industrial quality control, and economic and social purposes (unemployment rate, econometry, etc.) necessitated substantial advances in statistical practices.
Today the use of statistics has broadened far beyond its origins. Individuals and organizations use statistics to understand data and make informed decisions throughout the natural and social sciences, medicine, business, and other areas.
Statistics is generally regarded not as a subfield of mathematics but rather as a distinct, albeit allied, field. Many universities maintain separate mathematics and statistics departments. Statistics is also taught in departments as diverse as psychology, education, and public health.
Read more about this topic: History Of Statistics
Famous quotes containing the words statistics and/or today:
“O for a man who is a man, and, as my neighbor says, has a bone in his back which you cannot pass your hand through! Our statistics are at fault: the population has been returned too large. How many men are there to a square thousand miles in this country? Hardly one.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Give me today, for once, the worst throw of your dice, destiny. Today I transmute everything into gold.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)