Statistical Foundations for Data Science and Analytics
Statistical Foundations for Data Science and Analytics Data science blends math with real world problems. Statistical thinking helps you turn numbers into reliable knowledge. By focusing on uncertainty, you can avoid overclaiming results and design better experiments. This guide covers core ideas that apply across fields, from business analytics to research and product work. Descriptive statistics summarize data quickly: mean, median, and mode describe central tendency; standard deviation and interquartile range describe spread. A simple example: monthly sales data: 8, 12, 9, 11, 14. The mean is about 10.8 and the spread hints at variability. Visuals like histograms support interpretation, but the numbers themselves give a first read. In practice, you will often report these numbers alongside a chart. ...