John Tukey

John Tukey (16 June 1915 – 26 July 2000) was an American statistician. Sourced Far better an approximate answer to the right question, which is often vague, than an exact answer to the wrong question, which can always be made precise. The future of data analysis. Annals of Mathematical Statistics 33 (1), (1962), page 13. Variant: "An approximate answer to the right question is worth a great deal more than a precise answer to the wrong question." "as the renowned statistician John Tukey once reportedly said," according to Super Freakonomics page 224. The combination of some data and an aching desire for an answer does not ensure that a reasonable answer can be extracted from a given body of data. Sunset salvo. The American Statistician 40 (1), (1986), page 74. Online at http://www.jstor.org/pss/2683137 The tool that is so dull that you cannot cut yourself on it is not likely to be sharp enough to be either useful or helpful. The Technical Tools of Statistics. The American Statistician 19 (2), (1965). Online at https://www.jstor.org/stable/2682374 External links Category:Statisticians Category:Mathematicians from the United States Category:1915 births Category:2000 deaths Category:Scientists from Massachusetts Category:National Medal of Science laureates Category:Princeton University alumni Category:Princeton University faculty Category:Brown University alumni