Skip to content

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age Paperback - 2006 - 2nd Edition

by Theodore M. Porter

From the publisher

Karl Pearson, founder of modern statistics, came to this field by way of passionate early studies of philosophy and cultural history as well as ether physics and graphical geometry. His faith in science grew out of a deeply moral quest, reflected also in his socialism and his efforts to find a new basis for relations between men and women. This biography recounts Pearson's extraordinary intellectual adventure and sheds new light on the inner life of science. Theodore Porter's intensely personal portrait of Pearson extends from religious crisis and sexual tensions to metaphysical and even mathematical anxieties. Pearson sought to reconcile reason with enthusiasm and to achieve the impersonal perspective of science without sacrificing complex individuality. Even as he longed to experience nature directly and intimately, he identified science with renunciation and positivistic detachment. Porter finds a turning point in Pearson's career, where his humanistic interests gave way to statistical ones, in his Grammar of Science (1892), in which he attempted to establish scientific method as the moral educational basis for a refashioned culture. In this original and engaging book, a leading historian of modern science investigates the interior experience of one man's scientific life while placing it in a rich tapestry of social, political, and intellectual movements.

First line

BEGINNING IN 1892, when he took up statistics as his scientific vocation, Karl Pearson devoted himself relentlessly to a project of almost universal quantification.

From the rear cover

"Karl Pearson was one of the most significant architects of modern statistics. In this remarkable book, Theodore Porter superbly captures the romance (and seldom has the use of this word been so appropriate) of Karl Pearson's early flirtation with philosophy and the tortured path that led him to statistics."--Stephen Stigler, University of Chicago

"Brilliant! Karl Pearson is fortunate to have a biographer who saves him from what he most abhorred: his fear that a life could be reduced to a mere discovery, stripped of all its personal and historical specificity. "--Ken Alder, Northwestern University, author of "The Measure of All Things

From the jacket flap

"Karl Pearson was one of the most significant architects of modern statistics. In this remarkable book, Theodore Porter superbly captures the romance (and seldom has the use of this word been so appropriate) of Karl Pearson's early flirtation with philosophy and the tortured path that led him to statistics."--Stephen Stigler, University of Chicago

"Brilliant! Karl Pearson is fortunate to have a biographer who saves him from what he most abhorred: his fear that a life could be reduced to a mere discovery, stripped of all its personal and historical specificity. "--Ken Alder, Northwestern University, author of "The Measure of All Things

Details

  • Title Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
  • Author Theodore M. Porter
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition number 2nd
  • Edition 2
  • Pages 352
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Princeton University Press, Ewing, New Jersey, U.S.A.
  • Date 2006-01-08
  • ISBN 9780691126357 / 0691126356
  • Weight 1.11 lbs (0.50 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.22 x 6.3 x 0.85 in (23.42 x 16.00 x 2.16 cm)
  • Dewey Decimal Code B

About the author

Theodore Porter is Professor of History at UCLA and author of The Rise of Statistical Thinking and Trust in Numbers (both Princeton)
Back to Top↑

More Copies for Sale

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

by Theodore M. Porter

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
1
Seller
The Saint Bookstore
Southport, Merseyside, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$71.67
A$19.29 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Paperback / softback. New. Recounts Karl Pearson's extraordinary intellectual adventure and sheds light on the inner life of science. In this book, a leading historian of modern science investigates the interior experience of one man's scientific life while placing it in a tapestry of social, political, and intellectual movements.
Item Price
A$71.67
A$19.29 shipping to USA
Karl Pearson – The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson – The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

by Porter, Theodore M.

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Revaluation Books
Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 3 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$85.32
A$19.38 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Princeton Univ Pr, 2006. Paperback. New. 342 pages. 9.30x6.25x0.80 inches.
Item Price
A$85.32
A$19.38 shipping to USA
Karl Pearson : The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson : The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

by Porter, Theodore M

  • Used
Condition
Used - Good
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Better World Books
Mishawaka, Indiana, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$74.37
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Princeton University Press. Used - Good. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages.
Item Price
A$74.37
FREE shipping to USA
Karl Pearson – The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson – The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

by Porter, Theodore M.

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
2
Seller
Revaluation Books
Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 3 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$107.32
A$19.38 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Princeton Univ Pr, 2006. Paperback. New. 342 pages. 9.30x6.25x0.80 inches.
Item Price
A$107.32
A$19.38 shipping to USA
Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age.
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age.

by Porter, Theodore M.

  • Used
  • Paperback
  • first
Condition
Used
Edition
1st p/b, reprint ed.
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Bookhome Sydney
Annandale, New South Wales, Australia
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$60.00
A$38.00 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. 1st p/b, reprint ed.. Paperback octavo, very good condition, figures, few black & white text-photos, pages lightly toned, minor edgewear. 342 pp. This is a biography by Theodore Porter, of Karl Pearson, the British founder of modern statistics. Pearson's faith in science grew out of a deeply moral quest, reflected also in his socialism and his efforts to find a new basis for relations between men and women. This impressive and detailed biography looks at Pearson's intellectual adventure and sheds new light on the inner life of science.
Item Price
A$60.00
A$38.00 shipping to USA
Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

by Porter, Theodore M

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
5
Seller
SOUTHAUSTRALIANBOOKS
campbelltown, Florida, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$96.06
A$15.49 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Princeton University Press, 2006-01-07. paperback. New. 6x0x9. Brand New Book in Publishers original Sealing
Item Price
A$96.06
A$15.49 shipping to USA
Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age

by Porter, Theodore M

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780691126357 / 0691126356
Quantity Available
1
Seller
GridFreed LLC
San Diego, California, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
A$187.55
A$8.44 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Princeton University Press, 2006-01-08. Paperback. New. New. In shrink wrap. Looks like an interesting title!
Item Price
A$187.55
A$8.44 shipping to USA
Show all copies
Back to Top↑

Hang on… we’re fetching the requested page.