Statistics

The science of collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data to draw inferences about populations from samples.

• inference:: estimating population parameters from sample data
• regression models relationships between variables, predicting outcomes
• hypothesis testing evaluates evidence for or against a claim using p-values and significance
• Bayesian statistics updates beliefs via Bayes theorem from probability
• maximum likelihood estimation finds parameters that best explain observed data
• central limit theorem:: sample means converge to a normal distribution regardless of source
• Foundation of machine learning, experimental science, and decision-making
• Related: probability, linear algebra, optimization, information theory, game theory