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From:
[log in to unmask] (Jonathan E Mote)
Date:
Fri Mar 31 17:19:08 2006
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=================== HES POSTING =================== 
 
I plan to reply to Flavio Comim's editorial, but I first want to relate  
a decidedly unserious anecdote to the censorship thread.  I am sure  
many of you have heard this before. 
 
The statistician W.S. Gossett published his earlier work on t-distributions  
(which focused on quality control at the Guinness brewery) under a  
pseudonym because the Guinness brewery was uncomfortable with the  
thought of published work on the quality of their beer.  Hence the term  
"Student's T" because Gossett published under the pseudonym Student.   
 
My version has been passed down from statistician to statistician, so it has  
the flavor of an urban legend.  I'd be interested if anybody has more  
substantiated facts to add. 
 
Jonathon E. Mote 
Department of Sociology 
University of Pennsylvania 
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