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George E. P. Box Quotes

Statistician

George E. P. Box was an outstanding statistician known for his contributions to statistical modeling, experimental design, and computer science. His work has had a profound impact on modern statistics and data analysis.

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All Models Management Science Statistician Statistics Data Important Knows Practicals Risk

Famous George E. P. Box Quotes

“One important idea is that science is a means whereby learning is achieved, not by mere theoretical speculation on the one hand, nor by the undirected accumulation of practical facts on the other, but rather by a motivated iteration between theory and practice.”

Mean Important Ideas Facts Hands Practice Theory Mere Practicals Motivated Speculation Theoretical Accumulation Theory And Practice

Author:George E. P. Box

“For the theory-practice iteration to work, the scientist must be, as it were, mentally ambidextrous; fascinated equally on the one hand by possible meanings, theories, and tentative models to be induced from data and the practical reality of the real world, and on the other with the factual implications deducible from tentative theories, models and hypotheses.”

World Real Hands Reality Practice Theory Models Scientist Practicals Data Real World Fascinated Hypothesis Implications Factual Ambidextrous

Book:The collected works of George E.P. Box

Source: The collected works of George E.P. Box

“Discovering the unexpected is more important than confirming the known.”

Important Known Unexpected Discovering Testing Testers

Author:George E. P. Box

“Statistics is, or should be, about scientific investigation and how to do it better, but many statisticians believe it is a branch of mathematics. Now I agree that the physicist, the chemist, the engineer, and the statistician can never know too much mathematics, but their objectives should be better physics, better chemistry, better engineering, and in the case of statistics, better scientific investigation. Whether in any given study this implies more or less mathematics is incidental.”

Knows Should Believe Given Cases Study Too Much Mathematics Agree Physics Objectives Branches Statistics Chemistry Engineering Engineers Investigation Physicist Chemist Statistician

Author:George E. P. Box

“The only way to know how a complex system will behave-after you modify it-is to modify it and see how it behaves.”

Knows Way Know How Complexes Behave Complex Systems

Author:George E. P. Box

“The business of the statistician is to catalyze the scientific learning process.”

Process Learning Process Statistician

Author:George E. P. Box

“Just as the ability to devise simple but evocative models is the signature of the great scientist so overelaboration and overparameterization is often the mark of mediocrity.”

Simple Ability Models Scientist Mark Mediocrity Signatures Great Scientist

Author:George E. P. Box

“All models are wrong, but some are useful.”

Science Understanding Knowledge Models Investing Math Data Decision Making Statistics Mathematician Modeling Usefulness Modelling Statistician Approximation Economic Models Mathematical Models

Book:Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses

Source: Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses

“To find out what happens to a system when you interfere with it you have to interfere with it (not just passively observe it).”

Happens Science Research Observation Interfere

Book:The collected works of George E.P. Box

Source: The collected works of George E.P. Box

“Statisticians, like artists, have the bad habit of falling in love with their models.”

Artist Fall Habit Models Falling In Love Statistics Bad Habits Analytics Statistician

Author:George E. P. Box

“The management system which makes only a pretense of valuing employee involvement and encouraging employee empowerment merely breeds cynicism.”

Empowerment Management Employee Cynical Cynicism Involvement Pretense Management Systems

Author:George E. P. Box

“Remember that all models are wrong; the practical question is how wrong do they have to be to not be useful.”

Remember Science Models Errors Practicals Modelling

Book:Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses

Source: Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses

“The benefits provided by worker participation are twofold. Quality is improved because of the finding and fixing of a very large number of problems, but also, and perhaps equally important, moral is improved.”

Important Problem Numbers Quality Moral Risk Benefits Findings Management Workers Participation Fixing Large Numbers Risk Management

Author:George E. P. Box

“The old-fashioned idea of a good manager is one who is supposed to know all the answers, can solve every problem himself, and can give appropriate orders to his subordinates to carry out his plans... A good modern manager is like a good coach who leads and encourages his team in never-ending quality improvement.”

“Management must provide employees with tools that will enable them to do their jobs better, and with encouragement to use these tools. In particular, they must collect data.”

Use Jobs Risk Particular Tools Encouragement Management Data Employee Risk Management

Author:George E. P. Box

“All models are approximations. Essentially, all models are wrong, but some are useful. However, the approximate nature of the model must always be borne in mind.”

Mind Science Models Statistics Approximation

Book:Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses

Source: Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses

About the Author

Born: October 18, 1919
Died: March 28, 2013
Known for: Statistician
Quotes: 16

Books & Sources

Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge AnalysesRelated source material

The collected works of George E.P. BoxRelated source material

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