Fahlbeck vs. Charlier Wicksell in the middle in the … · Introduction Act I Act II Fahlbeck vs.Charlier Wicksell in the middle in the early days of Lund statistics Georg Lindgren

IntroductionAct IAct II

Fahlbeck vs. CharlierWicksell in the middle

in the early days of Lund statistics

Georg Lindgren

Lund University

Mathematical Statistics Centenary 2015, May 12

Lindgren Fahlbeck vs. Charlier 1 / 14


The actorsThe plotPontus � the defenderCarl � the revolutionary

Lund � 100 years ago

Two characters and � the man in the middle




Is statistics a science?

Gottfried Achenwall, 1748: Statistik ≈ �Staatenkunde�

Theodore Wittstein, 1867: �Mathematische Statistik und derenAnwendung ...�

Karl Pearson, 1891: Statistics is a universal methodological science�married with probability and couched in the abstract language ofmathemathics�; Judy Klein, ... A history of time series analysis1662-1938, (1997)

Chancellor of the Swedish universities, 1907: �Statistics, whoseimportance as an independent science nowadays is commonly agreedupon, ..., demands ... a much �rmer position at our universities ... ...utmost importance for society ... scienti�c study of statistics ...needing such education.�

But what science?




In the right corner:

Pontus Fahlbeck (1850-1923), professor in Lund in political science andhistory (1889), political science and statistics (1902)

Statistics is a social science ONLY � and the only EXACT socialscience

Deals with �masses of people� and money

�Statistical methods� DO NOT EXIST

�Numerical means to reach knowledge� EXIST and are needed � butthey are not �statistics�

Conservative, member First chamber of the Parliament = �right�

Very rich � created �Fahlbeckska stiftelsen� and donated money for aprofessor in Finland




In the left corner:

Carl Vilhelm Ludvig Charlier (1862-1934), professor in astronomy (1897)

Statistics is a tool to bring structure to data

Created �stellar statistics� � computational sta�, numerical calculators

Lectured/textbook in mathematical statistics (1905)

Statistics deals with �masses of anything� � stars, eligible voters,money, populations, �rms, ...

(Mathematical) statistics is the tool that empowers the statistician todraw conclusions from his statistical material ...

... just as necessary for the statistician as the knife is for the surgeon

radical liberal (member of Verdandi) = �left�



Sven � in the centreSven Wicksell and astronomyStatistics education in Lund

Ille faciet: He, who did the job

Anna oclt Knut lf/ichsell med sina sdner Saen ocb Finn. Bilden tagen i901 i Lund tsamban d nze d profess orsutndmningen.

lan sig talade de om den norska froken Bugge som bodde ihop med doce ntWicksell. Professor Hamilton som mest ldmna ovet en del av sin professur

till Knut var svalt viinlig. Hans grevinna, Hamilton var greve, frigade Knutom han fortfarande holl pi sina rysliga id6er om att folk bara skall ha trebarn. "De ha visst en hel smita sjdlva", kommentetade Knut,

Jag vet inte om det var grevinnan Hamilton som direkt kallade Anna forfrcjken Bugge, si som Anna Branting beskrivit det. Sj?ilv har jag hcirt att detskulle varit friherrinnan Henriette Coyet pi Torup, Selma Lagerlofs goda

vdn. Detta tog dock Anna lugnt.

t28

Father: Economist Knut Wicksell, Fil lic inMathematics, Professor in Political economy

Mother: Anna Bugge, �A woman ahead ofher time� - the �rst Swedish female diplo-mate, representative to the League of Na-tions in Geneva, �su�ragette�

Sons: Sven and Finn




About Sven Dag Wicksell

"One day, more than 30 years ago, a young student entered

the mathematical auditorium in the main university building. He

was wearing sturdy marching boots. ... The September sun

glittered in his hair, youthful spirit radiated from his face. He

gave a vision of a Norwegian gut �paa fjeldet i sol�.

Thorild Dahlgren, 1939




Sven Wicksell � an astronomer turns statistician

Fil kand 1911 � the same day as when his mother, Anna Bugge, �nishedher Jur kand exam

Fil lic 1913 (examination in Astronomy) = course work completed = givesthe right to defend a thesis

PhD thesis 1915, May 5 (typical �Stellar statistics�):The general characteristics of the frequency function of stellar movements :as derived from the proper motions of the stars / by Sven D. Wicksell

Docent salary from 1916 � imminent risk he escapes to Stockholm




Third world academic in Mathematical statistics

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Eugeny Slutsky, Lecturer inMathematical statistics, Kiev,1913

Henry L. Reitz, Professor inMathematical statistics,Chicago, 1913

Sven Wicksell, Docent inMathematical statistics, Lund,1915, May 12, by appointmet ofthe Chancelor of the Swedishuniversities




Formal programs

Wicksell set up formal study pro-grams � both in statistics and inmathematical statistics

Statistics became a regular subject1918

Mathematical statistics studentshad to obtain special permission toinclude the topic in an exam, be-came a regular subject 1961



From �little� to �something�WallengrenWicksell

How �ll the need for statistics in Lund?

1907: Need for statistics recognized by the government

1909: Also in Lund � but best to wait to see what happens in Uppsala

1910: Gustav Sundbärg professor in Statistics in Uppsala

1912: Fahlbeck to retire soon � should there be a Statistics professor?

1912: Fahlbeck statistics or Charlier statistics???

1913: Disagreement!I History professor Clason: strong emphasis on mathematics will

jeopardise reqruitmentI Economist Knut Wicksell: Of course �statistics� must include

�mathematical statistics�

1914: Parliament says NO to a professor in Lund � too much quarrel

1915: Sigfrid Wallengren to replace Fahlbeck as professor in Politicalscience and statistics




Sigfrid Wallengren (1876-1927)

New professor in political science and statistics 1915-1927

Had little time for statistics

Tage Erlander, Swedish prime minister 1946-1969, studied statisticsand mathematical statistics

How get time for an oral examination with Wallengren?

Wrote about Pontus Fahlbeck's view on statistics: �To what extent hewas too strict to limit the use of higher mathematics in statistics ...must be left to the debate of the specialists� :




Sven Wicksell professor in Statistics

1915-1925: Sven Wicksell responsible for statistics in Lund

1915-1927: Sigfrid Wallengren professor in �... and statistics�

1926: Parliament gives money for a professor in statistics in Lund

Wicksell was summoned to the chair � �superior to any Swedish manwho could reasonably be considered for the position�

1929: Department of Statistics established

1939: Wicksell dies, Carl-Erik Quensel new professor (1941)

1959: Gunnar Blom appointed to the dormant docent position inMathematicsl statistics




Some more details

Peter Guttorp & Georg Lindgren: Why distinguish between statistics and

mathematical statistics? The case of Swedish academia. (2015)


Documents

Fahlbeck vs. Charlier Wicksell in the middle in the … · Introduction Act I Act II Fahlbeck vs.Charlier Wicksell in the middle in the early days of Lund statistics Georg Lindgren