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17%OFFSharon Bertsch Mcgrayne - The Theory That Would Not Die: How Bayes´ Rule Cracked the Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines, and Emerged Triumphant from Two Centuries of Controversy - 9780300188226 - V9780300188226
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The Theory That Would Not Die: How Bayes´ Rule Cracked the Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines, and Emerged Triumphant from Two Centuries of Controversy

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Description for The Theory That Would Not Die: How Bayes´ Rule Cracked the Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines, and Emerged Triumphant from Two Centuries of Controversy Paperback. Drawing on primary source material and interviews with statisticians and other scientists, this book offers an account of Bayes' rule for general readers, It traces its discovery by an amateur mathematician in the 1740s through its development into roughly its modern form by French scientist Pierre Simon Laplace. Num Pages: 336 pages. BIC Classification: PBTB; PBX. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 236 x 157 x 24. Weight in Grams: 526.

A New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice: A vivid account of the generations-long dispute over Bayes' rule, one of the greatest breakthroughs in the history of applied mathematics and statistics

"An intellectual romp touching on, among other topics, military ingenuity, the origins of modern epidemiology, and the theological foundation of modern mathematics."—Michael Washburn, Boston Globe

"To have crafted a page-turner out of the history of statistics is an impressive feat. If only lectures at university had been this racy."—David Robson, New Scientist

Bayes' rule appears to be a straightforward, one-line theorem: by updating our initial ... Read more

In the first-ever account of Bayes' rule for general readers, Sharon Bertsch McGrayne explores this controversial theorem and the human obsessions surrounding it. She traces its discovery by an amateur mathematician in the 1740s through its development into roughly its modern form by French scientist Pierre Simon Laplace. She reveals why respected statisticians rendered it professionally taboo for 150 years—at the same time that practitioners relied on it to solve crises involving great uncertainty and scanty information (Alan Turing's role in breaking Germany's Enigma code during World War II), and explains how the advent of off-the-shelf computer technology in the 1980s proved to be a game-changer. Today, Bayes' rule is used everywhere from DNA de-coding to Homeland Security.

Drawing on primary source material and interviews with statisticians and other scientists, The Theory That Would Not Die is the riveting account of how a seemingly simple theorem ignited one of the greatest controversies of all time.

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Product Details

Publisher
Yale University Press United States
Number of pages
336
Format
Paperback
Publication date
2012
Condition
New
Number of Pages
360
Place of Publication
, United States
ISBN
9780300188226
SKU
V9780300188226
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 5 to 9 working days
Ref
99-1

About Sharon Bertsch Mcgrayne
Sharon Bertsch McGrayne is the author of numerous books, including Nobel Prize Women in Science: Their Lives, Struggles, and Momentous Discoveries and Prometheans in the Lab: Chemistry and the Making of the Modern World. She lives in Seattle.

Reviews for The Theory That Would Not Die: How Bayes´ Rule Cracked the Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines, and Emerged Triumphant from Two Centuries of Controversy
"If you're not thinking like a Bayesian, perhaps you should be."—John Allen Paulos, New York Times Book Review "A masterfully researched tale of human struggle and accomplishment . . . Renders perplexing mathematical debates digestible and vivid for even the most lay of audiences."—Michael Washburn, Boston Globe "[An] engrossing study. . . . Her book is a compelling and entertaining ... Read more

Goodreads reviews for The Theory That Would Not Die: How Bayes´ Rule Cracked the Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines, and Emerged Triumphant from Two Centuries of Controversy


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