New! Sign up for our free email newsletter.
Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Statistics

Statistics is a mathematical science pertaining to the collection, analysis, interpretation or explanation, and presentation of data. It is applicable to a wide variety of academic disciplines, from the physical and social sciences to the humanities. Statistics are also used for making informed decisions.

Statistical methods can be used to summarize or describe a collection of data; this is called descriptive statistics. In addition, patterns in the data may be modeled in a way that accounts for randomness and uncertainty in the observations, and then used to draw inferences about the process or population being studied; this is called inferential statistics. Both descriptive and inferential statistics comprise applied statistics. There is also a discipline called mathematical statistics, which is concerned with the theoretical basis of the subject.

A common goal for a statistical research project is to investigate causality, and in particular to draw a conclusion on the effect of changes in the values of predictors or independent variables on response or dependent variables. There are two major types of causal statistical studies, experimental studies and observational studies. In both types of studies, the effect of differences of an independent variable (or variables) on the behavior of the dependent variable are observed. The difference between the two types is in how the study is actually conducted. Each can be very effective.

Related Stories
 


Computers & Math News

July 29, 2025

Deep in Serbia's Jadar Valley, scientists discovered a mineral with an uncanny resemblance to Superman's Kryptonite both in composition and name. Dubbed jadarite, this dull white crystal lacks the ...
Quantum computing may one day outperform classical machines in solving certain complex problems, but when and how this “quantum advantage” emerges has remained unclear. Now, researchers from Kyoto University have linked this advantage to ...
Engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison uncovered a critical flaw in how lunar and Martian rovers are tested on Earth. Simulations revealed that test results have been misleading for decades because researchers only adjusted rover weight to ...
A breakthrough AI system is revolutionizing cancer immunotherapy by enabling scientists to design protein-based keys that train a patient s immune cells to attack cancer with extreme precision. This method, capable of reducing development time from ...
AI-generated videos are becoming dangerously convincing and UC Riverside researchers have teamed up with Google to fight back. Their new system, UNITE, can detect deepfakes even when faces aren't ...
Aalto University physicists in Finland have set a new benchmark in quantum computing by achieving a record-breaking millisecond coherence in a transmon qubit — nearly doubling prior limits. This development not only opens the door to far more ...
Even the most powerful AI models, including ChatGPT, can make surprisingly basic errors when navigating ethical medical decisions, a new study reveals. Researchers tweaked familiar ethical dilemmas and discovered that AI often defaulted to intuitive ...
Researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities have made a promising breakthrough in memory technology by using a nickel-tungsten alloy called Ni₄W. This material shows powerful magnetic ...
Using advanced metasurfaces, researchers can now twist light to uncover hidden images and detect molecular handedness, potentially revolutionizing data encryption, biosensing, and drug ...
A new leap in lab automation is shaking up how scientists discover materials. By switching from slow, traditional methods to real-time, dynamic chemical experiments, researchers have created a self-driving lab that collects 10 times more data, ...
A groundbreaking step in AI hardware efficiency comes from Germany, where scientists have engineered a vast spin waveguide network that processes information with far less energy. These spin waves quantum ripples in magnetic materials offer a ...
Neural networks first treat sentences like puzzles solved by word order, but once they read enough, a tipping point sends them diving into word meaning instead—an abrupt “phase transition” reminiscent of water flashing into steam. By revealing ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:56 pm ET