Statistics, an Introductory Analysis.

by Taro Yamane
Review by: Jules Joskow
Journal of the American Statistical Association, Vol. 60, No. 310 (Jun., 1965), pp. 678-680
Published by: American Statistical Association
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678 AMERICAN STATISTICAL ASSOCIATION JOURNAL, JUNE 1965

variance,and Hotelling'sT2 statisticon the basis thatthe methodof characteristic

functions is not used in theirderivation.The reviewerwouldlike to mentionthat
thisis notstrictlyso, and thederivation ofthesedistributions presentsan interesting
applicationof the methodsof characteristic functions.In chapterfourthe authors
considerindependent statisticsin a givenpopulation.Most of the resultsreferto
whichareindependent
statistics in a normalpopulation,and includelinearand quad-
raticstatistics,
thedecomposition ofchi-squares,and translation-invariant and scale-
invariantstatistics.In chapterfivetheauthorsconsiderthecharacterization ofpopu-
lationsby theindependence ofstatistics,in particularsituationswherethe property
thattwogivenfunctions ofn randomvariablesare independent determines the dis-
tribution functions of the n randomvariables.In chaptersix the authorsstudya
numberofproblemswhichinvolvetheconceptofregression, thatis, the conditional
expectation of Y givenX. In chapterseventheauthorsconsidersomeproblems in the
theoryof stochasticprocesses,in particular,two characterizations of the Wiener
processbyproperties ofthedistributions ofcertainstochastic integrals.Chaptereight
is concerned withidentically distributedstatistics.The majorportionofthischapter
is devotedto an expositionofthe principalstatements and a briefindicationofthe
proofs ofresultsofYu. V. Linnik.Chapterninewhichis veryshortconsiders thechar-
acterization ofpopulationsbythedistribution ofa statistic,
and presents somesimple
resultsforthe case of a linearstatistic.Chapterten deals withstabilitytheorems,
whichare problemsofprobability theoryand have no directconnection withstatis-
tics.The appendicescoversomebasic conceptsofprobability theory,Fouriertrans-
formsof probabilitymeasuresin R., some resultsconcerningdeterminants and
matrices,proofsof lemmas,and stochasticconvergence.The references include
ninety-four items.
Thismonograph is a usefuladditionto theliteratureofMathematicalStatisticsand
shouldbe in thelibraryofeveryseriousstudentofthesubject.The reviewer doesfeel,
however, thatthe publishers'objectiveof a formof publicationat moderatecostis
notattainedconsidering the size and formatofthe monograph relativeto the price
in theU.S.A.
Analysis. Taro Yamane. New York: Harper & Row, 1964,
Statistics,an Introductory
pp. xvi, 734. $8.75.
National Economic ResearchAssociates
Tarrival
JULES JOSKOW,

publication,in 1962 of Yamane's

HE signaledthe
for Economists
Mfathematics
on the sceneof an authorwithan unusualtalentforexposition.In his
presentworkDr. Yamane continuesto displaythat talent. His writingstyle is
extraordinarilyclear and concise.As he movesfromthe simpleto the complex,he
providesa degreeof continuity that cannothelpbut be a boon bothto the teacher
successon this
and to thestudentofstatistics.Yet, despitetheauthor'soutstanding
score,one wonderswhetherhe has equally successfully achievedthe fundamental
objectiveshe set forthisbook.
In hisprefacetheauthorstates,"Thisis a textbookmainlyforstudentsin business
and economics . . . " in which the first15 chapters are recommendedfor use in a
one semesterterminalcoursein statisticsin an economicsor businesscurriculum.
The remaining eightchaptersare designedforadvancedstudentswhoare planning
to takefurther study.A reviewof
coursesin statisticsor to undertakeindependent
thefirst15 chapterheadingslistedin hisindexwillindicatethattheauthordoes,in-
deed,treatwiththosematterswhichone wouldexpectto coverin an introductory
economicor businessstatisticscourse.A readingofthesechapters,however,reveals
a disturbinglack ofemphasisupontopicswhichare ofparticularimportance to the

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BOOK REVIEWS 679
economicsorbusinessstudent-particularly ifhisstatisticscourseis terminal.Thus,
graphicpresentation is allottedone paragraphwiththe "interested"studentbeing
referredto threeotherwidelyused textsforfurther discussion.The studentis given
no awarenessofthedata collection problems he mayfaceafterhe leavesthestatistics
laboratory and attemptsto applythestatisticsmethodshe has learnedso wellin the
real worldof economicor businessresearch.He gets hardlya hintfromthis text
thatsamplingdata maybe derivedbymethodsotherthanthoseofthesimplerandom
sample,withor withoutreplacement.
Timeseriesanalysisis accordeda scant37 pagesoutofthe440 devotedto thefirst
15 chapters.Virtuallyno indicationis given of the practicaluses of time series
analysisin economicsor businesssave fora brief,half-page"cautionon forecasting."
True, the authordoes re-visittimeseriesanalysisin Chapter23 to introducethe
conceptofcurvilinear trendand growthcurvesbutherethetreatment is so mechani-
cal as to makeone suspectthechapteris an afterthought.
The author'streatment ofindexnumbers is quiteroutinebutis enlivenedsomewhat
bytheinclusionof 16 pagesofthetranscript ofhearingsbeforetheSubcommittee on
EconomicStatisticsof the JointEconomicCommitteecoveringa colloquybetween
Ewan Clague and SenatorPaul Douglas. These pages givethe readera rareoppor-
tunitytogeta "behindthescenes"viewofthemanyproblems facedbythestatistician
in theconstruction ofmeaningful priceindexes.It is disappointing to findthatthese
problemsgetsuchlimitedtreatment in thebodyofthetexton indexnumbers.
Whilethe authorpointsout in his prefacethat hypothetical examplesare used
whichhave beenkeptdeliberately simple,the usefulness ofthistextfora coursein
economicorbusinessstatisticsmighthavebeensignificantly enhancedhad theexam-
ples morecloselyrelatedto thosefields.Too oftenthe data employedto illustrate
methodology relateto grades,intelligencequotients,heightorweightandtooseldom
doestheauthorgivemorethanpassingreference to theapplicationofthesemethods
in practice.The fewillustrations he does provideare sometimesmisleading;e.g.,
the machinetool companythatforecastsin accordancewiththe procedureoutlined
on page403 maybe buyinga gooddeal oftrouble.
The justificationformostof the foregoing comments, it shouldbe emphasized,
restsupontheauthor'sstatedobjectiveofproducinga textfora coursein economic
and businessstatisticsand uponthisreviewer's opinionthatsucha textmustempha-
size the special (and sometimesthe peculiar)statisticalproblemsraised in those
fieldsevenat thepossiblesacrifice ofothermaterialwhichmayhave a specialinterest
(or fascination)forthestatistician or mathematician. Such specialproblemscan and
probablyshould,be ignoredby thoseseekinga textfora firstcoursein a generalized
statisticssequence.
In contrastto therelatively limitedtreatment afforded topicsofspecialinterestin
economicsand business,themoreuniversally applicabletopicsoftestsofhypotheses
and estimation,correlation and regression,probabilitytheoryand probabilitydis-
tributions arehandledwithcareandimagination. Ofparticular is theauthor's
interest
meticuloushandlingof the distinctions betweenregression analysisand correlation
analysis.His treatments ofprobability theory(Chapter5), decisiontheory(Chapter
9) and settheory(Chapter16) areexceptionally welldone.
Because of the verywide rangeof topicsthat are coveredin thisbook,it is in-
evitablethatsomequestionswillbe raisedon the author'schoicesforemphasisand
de-emphasis.Frequently,usefuland importanttopics are dismissedwith a brief
reference to othertexts.Thus,thestudentis referred to Fisherand to Snedecorfora
discussion ofthesamplingdistribution ofthecorrelation coefficient.
He is referredto
Fisherand othersfora discussionof "the basic idea of the analysisof variance."

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680 AMERICAN STATISTICAL ASSOCIATION JOURNAL, JUNE 1965

He is referredto Ezekial and Fox for a discussion of curvilinearregression.True,

it must be recognizedthat everyauthor is faced withthe problemof space limitations
and the consequent need to make choices among alternatives.One can only suggest
that a more careful paring of some of the presentlyincluded material might have
provided room necessaryforone of the missingtopics. A somewhat brieferdiscussion
of the OC curve in Chapter 8 mighthave provided space foranother.
The physical appearance of the text is excellent. The layout and typographyis
pleasing and the many illustrations are quite well done. There are no more, and
probablyless, than the usual numberof typographicalerrorsin a firstedition.Among
them: a should be replaced with s in line 15 of page 86; Eq. (5), page 146, should be
written with -\/ns;Actions A1 and A2 on page 193 are reversed; the unexplained
variance at page 423 should be writtenas 2(Y- Yc)2. The usual appendix tables are
here published as a separate booklet which, as the author intends, should be quite
helpfulto the instructorforexaminationpurposes.
There can be little question that this text representsa valuable addition to the
alternativesavailable to the instructor.It is likelyto gain wide (and justified)usage,
particularlyin generalized courses in statistics.
Research Design and Analysis. Raymond0. Collier,Jr. and StanleyM. Elam, Editors.
Bloomington,Indiana: Phi Delta Kappa, 1961. Pp. viii, 208. $3.50.
HENRY F. KAISER, Universityof Wisconsin
F THE interestand intensityof discussion followingthe presentationof a formal
paper is any indication of the meritof the paper, then this loosely connected col-
lection of seven contributionsto the strategyof educational research contains two
papers of substantial consequence. I shall allow the reader to inferfrommy remarks
below which two appear to meet this criterion.
This symposiumstartedon a tragicnote: Palmer Johnson,the movingforcebehind
it, died shortlybeforeit began. His partiallycompletedkeynotepaper is summarized
by Raymond Collier. Johnson'sprimarymessage, according to Collier, is a plea for
" . . . the utilizationof appropriate experimentaldesigns in a large-scale cooperative
program," and a corresponding plea for " . . . less random effortin research."
The followingpaper, by a mathematician,Paul Rosenbloom, describes an actual
attempt at large-scaleexperimentation(with a mathematicscurriculum).This seem-
ingly ramblingrecitationgives at least to me little confidencein the efficacyof get-
ting togethera "team" and "doing thingsbig." While Rosenbloom's project may be
quite productivein fermentingfruitfulideas in mathematics education, to referto
it as experimentalin any but the most primitivesense is presumptuous.E. F. Lind-
quist, the principaldiscussant and an old-prohard-lineeducational researcher,gently
but tellinglytakes Rosenbloom to task.
Two papers on sampling appear next. The first,by Leslie Kish, exhibits wisdom
fromtime to time, but primarilyis a compilation of some of the many complicated
formulaswhicharise in connectionwith sample surveys,presentedwithless explana-
tion than mightbe desired. Francis Cornell, in the second sampling paper, paints a
bleak pictureof the state of samplingin educational research.For one who has dealt,
with public school administrators,his pessimismis warranted.The
on the firing-line,
principal value of Cornell's paper is probably the list of ten bad thingsnot to do.
Oscar Kempthornefollows with "The Design and Analysis of Experiments with
Some Reference to Educational Research." Since Professor Kempthorne is surely
one of the most profoundthinkersaround on foundational issues in the design and
analysis of experiments,it is to be expected that his paper is worthyof serious con-
templation. This expectation is correct: in 30 pages we have a careful and highly

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