Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation and presentation of data.

[1][2] It deals with all aspects of data including the planning of data collection in terms of the design ofsurveys and experiments.[1] The word statistics, when referring to the scientific discipline, is singular, as in "Statistics is an art."[3] This should not be confused with the word statistic, referring to a quantity (such as mean or median) calculated from a set of data,[4] whose plural is statistics ("this statistic seems wrong" or "these statistics are misleading").

Scope[edit]
Statistics is alternately described as a mathematical body of science that pertains to the collection, analysis, interpretation or explanation, and presentation of data,[5] or as a branch of mathematics[6] concerned with collecting and interpreting data. Because of its empirical roots and its focus on applications, statistics is typically considered a distinct mathematical science rather than as a branch of mathematics.[7][8]Some tasks a statistician may involve are less mathematical; for example, ensuring that data collection is undertaken in a way that produces valid conclusions, coding data, or reporting results in ways comprehensible to those who must use them. Statisticians improve data quality by developing specific experiment designs and survey samples. Statistics itself also provides tools for prediction and forecasting the use of data through statistical models. Statistics is applicable to a wide variety of academic disciplines, including natural and social sciences, government, and business. Statistical consultants can help organizations and companies that don't have in-house expertise relevant to their particular questions. Statistical methods can summarize or describe a collection of data. This is called descriptive statistics. This is particularly useful in communicating the results of experiments and research. In addition, data patterns may be modeled in a way that accounts for randomness and uncertainty in the observations. These models can be used to draw inferences about the process or population under studya practice called inferential statistics. Inference is a vital element of scientific advance, since it provides a way to draw conclusions from data that are subject to random variation. To prove the propositions being investigated further, the conclusions are tested as well, as part of the scientific method. Descriptive statistics and analysis of the new data tend to provide more information as to the truth of the proposition. "Applied statistics" comprises descriptive statistics and the application of inferential statistics.[9][verification needed] Theoretical statistics concerns both the logical arguments

underlying justification of approaches to statistical inference, as well encompassing mathematical statistics. Mathematical statistics includes not only the manipulation of probability distributions necessary for deriving results related to methods of estimation and inference, but also various aspects of computational statistics and the design of experiments. Statistics is closely related to probability theory, with which it is often grouped. The difference is, roughly, that probability theory starts from the given parameters of a total population to deduce probabilities that pertain to samples. Statistical inference, however, moves in the opposite directioninductively inferring from samples to the parameters of a larger or total population. Statistics has many ties to machine learning and data mining. Statistics is the mathematical science involving the collection, analysis and interpretation of data. A number of specialties have evolved to apply statistical theory and methods to various disciplines. Certain topics have "statistical" in their name but relate to manipulations of probability distributions rather than to statistical analysis.

Actuarial science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in the insurance and finance industries. Astrostatistics is the discipline that applies statistical analysis to the understanding of astronomical data. Biostatistics is a branch of biology that studies biological phenomena and observations by means of statistical analysis, and includes medical statistics. Business analytics is a rapidly developing business process that applies statistical methods to data sets (often very large) to develop new insights and understanding of business performance & opportunities Chemometrics is the science of relating measurements made on a chemical system or process to the state of the system via application of mathematical or statistical methods. Demography is the statistical study of all populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population, that is, one that changes over time or space. Econometrics is a branch of economics that applies statistical methods to the empirical study of economic theories and relationships.

Environmental statistics is the application of statistical methods to environmental science. Weather, climate, air and water quality are included, as are studies of plant and animal populations. Epidemiology is the study of factors affecting the health and illness of populations, and serves as the foundation and logic of interventions made in the interest of public health and preventive medicine. Geo statistics is a branch of geography that deals with the analysis of data from disciplines such as petroleum geology, hydrogeology, hydrology, meteorology, oceanography, geochemistry, geography. Operations research (or Operational Research) is an interdisciplinary branch of applied mathematics and formal science that uses methods such as mathematical modeling, statistics, and algorithms to arrive at optimal or near optimal solutions to complex problems. Population ecology is a sub-field of ecology that deals with the dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the environment. Psychometric is the theory and technique of educational and psychological measurement of knowledge, abilities, attitudes, and personality traits. Quality control reviews the factors involved in manufacturing and production; it can make use of statistical sampling of product items to aid decisions in process control or in accepting deliveries. Quantitative psychology is the science of statistically explaining and changing mental processes and behaviors in humans. Reliability Engineering is the study of the ability of a system or component to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time Statistical finance, an area of econophysics, is an empirical attempt to shift finance from its normative roots to a positivist framework using exemplars from statistical physics with an emphasis on emergent or collective properties of financial markets. Statistical mechanics is the application of probability theory, which includes mathematical tools for dealing with large populations, to the field

of mechanics, which is concerned with the motion of particles or objects when subjected to a force.

Statistical physics is one of the fundamental theories of physics, and uses methods of probability theory in solving physical problems. Statistical thermodynamics is the study of the microscopic behaviors of thermodynamic systems using probability theory and provides a molecular level interpretation of thermodynamic quantities such as work, heat, free energy, and entropy.
(1) Statistics helps in providing a better understanding and exact description of a phenomenon of nature. (2) Statistical helps in proper and efficient planning of a statistical inquiry in any field of study. (3) Statistical helps in collecting an appropriate quantitative data. (4) Statistics helps in presenting complex data in a suitable tabular, diagrammatic and graphic form for an easy and clear comprehension of the data. (5) Statistics helps in understanding the nature and pattern of variability of a phenomenon through quantitative obersevations. (6) Statistics helps in drawing valid inference, along with a measure of their reliability about the population parameters from the sample data.