WELCOME

TO

“THE WORLD STATISTICS DAY”

@

“CONVERGENCE 2010”

MESSAGE

Dear participants of Convergence ‘2010, It is my great honor and pleasure to congratulate your celebration of the first World Statistics Day at your Covergence’2010. The International Statistical Institute is proud of your leadership in statistics education and research in the past and looks forward to more contributions in the future.I wish the students and distinguished faculty members of this great Department of Mathematics & Statistics, Ramjas College, University of Delhi for what they have achieved in promotion of the value of statistics in all aspects of human lives by enhancing the Role of Statistics in Service of the Society, Good Governance, and Nation Building.Once again, the ISI, on behalf of world statistics community, sends its deepest gratitude for your initiative and wishes all the success to each and all participants in this meaningful occasion from the beginning to the end.

Jae Chang LeePresident-Elect

The International Statistical Institute

MESSAGE

‘On behalf of the International Statistical Institute (ISI) we would like to convey our warmest congratulations to the participants of the Convergence 2010 event on the occasion of World Statistics Day.At this first World Statistics Day, statisticians worldwide, working in all kinds of statistical disciplines, contribute to the celebrations by organizing a wide variety of activities. We congratulate the Department of Mathematics & Statistics, Ramjas College of the University of Delhi with organising this event. We wish the speakers and the participants an informative and pleasant conference. ISI contributes to the celebration with launching today the revised ISI Declaration on Professional Ethics. The Declaration contains a coherent set of shared values and principles to be used by statisticians working in diverse organization around the world. ISI Director Ada van Krimpen will officially launch the revised Declaration at a special session on World Statistics Day during the Conference of ISI Section IAOS (International Association of Official Statistics) in Santiago de Chile. We encourage the use of the new Declaration statisticians worldwide and recommend paying attention to the new Declaration in your important work. Please accept our appreciation for your work and wishing all of you a successful meeting and happy World Statistics Day!’

Jef Teugels Ada van KrimpenPresident (I.S.I.) Director (I.S.I.)

MESSAGE‘It gives me great pleasure to send you my best wishes and blessings on the occasion of the World Statistics Day. Statistics provides us a means to make sense of numerical data in fields as diverse as medicine, business, technology, and engineering. It also provides us a means of testing different hypotheses in the presence of uncertain data and separate cases that are coincidences from others that indicate correlations.’

Subhash Kak Regents

Professor and Head, Department of Computer Science

Oklahoma State University,Stillwater, OK 74078 USA

(Prof. Subhash Kak’s research in the fields of information theory, cryptography, neural networks, and quantum information has been showcased in the popular media including Discovery and History channels, PBS, Dutch Public TV OHM. The author of 18 books which include "The Architecture of Knowledge" , Prof. Kak has many awards in his honor.)

MESSAGE‘I am delighted to see that you have organized an impressive program and activities in celebration of the World Statistics Day at Ramjas College. I congratulate you for your leadership and vision in planning of the program. World Statistics Day marks recognition by the United Nations, of the role Statistics plays in advancing science and society. The enrichment activities organized by the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Ramjas College, are truly impressive and go a long way in celebrating the importance and contributions of Statistics. I am honored to send my greetings and very best wishes for gala success of the celebration activities.’

Sudhir GuptaDivision of Statistics

Northern Illinois Univ.DeKalb, IL 60115 USA

(Professor Sudhir Gupta is an alumni of Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute, Delhi. He is a Chief editor of the Journal of Statistics and Applications and is a pioneer in the field of Design of Experiments.)

MESSAGE‘I am delighted to be informed by the 2 day activity to celebrate the World Statistics Day at Ramjas College, Delhi, on October 20, 2010. India is a country which has made very significant contributions to the development of mathematics over the centuries and which is the residence and place of origin of many mathematicians and statisticians of genius. I hope that this event will continue the great tradition andespecially that it will contribute to the formation of young mathematicians and statisticians. You will be discussing the important application of statistics and mathematics in real life and in good governance as well. I also hope that India will show to the world a new way to applying mathematics to society, combining efficiency with spiritual principles.’

Jan HogendijkProfessor of Mathematics

University of UtrechtThe Netherlands

MESSAGE‘…I also note that the lectures and the panel discussions are all on very relevant topics and I am sure the participants would gain a great deal of advantage in their various pursuits. I would particularly urge the young students to carefully attend to the discussions….Please accept my best wishes for the success of the function.’

Arun M. VaidyaDepartment of Mathematics

Gujarat University Ahmedabad

MESSAGE‘A tiny country like Luxembourg, huge country like India should both be well aware of the necessity of developing the science of Statistics.’

Jean-Paul PierSociété mathématique du Luxembourg

117 rue Jean-Pierre MichelsL-4243 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg

MESSAGE‘It is an honor for me to take this opportunity to greet all the participants in the event at Ramjas College celebrating World Statistics Day. Statistics and their application are indispensable in the modern world. Applied statistics lie at the core of so much of modern scholarship, in the exact sciences, the social sciences, medicine, and even in the humanities.

Let me add that I fondly recall my visit to Ramjas College more than five years ago.Wishing you all a most successful event and the brightest future.’

Nachum DershowitzProfessor of Computer Science

Tel Aviv UniversityIsrael

(Professor Dershowitz is an author of several well-known books on Computer Science. His areas of work include Artificial Intelligence, Calendar Algorithms, Logic, Information Retrieval, analysis of Historical Manuscripts. His other interests include World Calendars, Computer Risks and Software Horror Stories, etc.)

MESSAGE‘Greetings from Hiroshima, Japan, the City of Peace. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all of you for celebrating the World Statistics Day on October 20, 2010 at Ramjas College. ….. Here at the Radiation Effects Research Foundation, formerly known as the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission, we are dedicated to promote and we have a legacy of, the collection and statistical analyses of the data on the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Bombings for peaceful purposes and for the betterment of the society at large. This is what I view as “Statistics for Peace”. Mahatma Gandhi, as a staunch believer of peace and a practitioner of Ahimsa -- the principle of nonviolence, took an oath to work for peace and always speak the truth. Following his example, on this World Statistics Day, we as statisticians, must promise ourselves to do so through our data and honest scientific data analyses. By virtue of our professional abilities, we have the immense power to extract truth from numbers and we must sincerely strive to utilize this special ability to make this world a peaceful and better place in which to live. If we all could do so, that is what our “statistical significance” will be in its truest sense.

I wish you all a joyous and intellectually stimulating World Statistics Day and my best wishes to the organizers for a successful symposium.’

Ravindra KhattreeSenior Research ScientistDepartment of Statistics

Radiation Effects Research FoundationHiroshima, Japan.

and Dept. of Math. & Stat., Oakland Univ. Rochester, USA

(Professor Ravindra Khattree is a Member of the Center for Biomedical Research at Oakland University. He is a Chief Editor of the Journal of Statistics & Applications)

MESSAGE‘Greetings!It is a well-known fact that the public activity and discourse of both governments and other (public or private) organizations are necessarily base on data and the resulting (statistical) conclusions or inferences affect all activities in some way. To make meaningful summary and both immediate as well as long range predictions based onthis data and analysis, we need to proceed generally in three parts: (i) formulating a model, (ii) collecting data to verify the model's suitability, and (iii) a prognosis or prediction. The first one is based on an appropriate but necessary mathematical construct, the second one is the statistical analysis, and the final one leading to predictions both for the short and long ranges. The situation is to be continuously refined, updated and analyzed. This is the fundamental statistical activity which is necessarily based on suitable mathematical formulation, and relevant statistical estimation (of parameters), testing (both these termed `inference methodology') andthen prediction. It is thus clear that the three aspects noted above with statistical analysis at the center, are the life blood of human activity, and thus it is important and appropriate to celebrate this matter all over the world, reminding everyone about its key role in governing as well as other human works. I therefore wish a grand success of the organization of WSD at your place and all the future times.’

M. M. Rao Mathematics Department

University of California, Riverside, CA (U.S.A.)

MESSAGE‘I like to wish you and your colleagues all the best for the festivities for the first World Statistics Day.

The UN declaration of a World Statistics day (WSD) gives all statisticians and Statistics a valuable opportunity to contribute to our societies. Statistics can play a significant role in the economic and social developments of our societies. We need to work towards Evidence Based Policy in our governments and other organizations. This involves Statistical Capacity Building efforts to improve the national Statistical Capacity. We need to concentrate on improvements in Statistical Literacy in the society as a whole and in particular in the school systems starting from Kintergarten. Let us hope that H.G.Well's quote 'Statistical Thinking will as necessary for efficient citizenship as the ability to read and write" will be realized.

Once again thank you and wish you the best.’

Bovas AbrahamPast President, Statistical Society of Canada

Professor (Emeritus) of StatisticsWaterloo Research Institute in Insurance, Securities and Quantitative Finance

Business and Industrial Statistics Research GroupUniversity of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada

MESSAGE‘Dear Dignitaries, guests, colleagues and students,Much as I would have liked to, I am unable to attend the meeting to celebrate the World Statistics Day at Ramjas College, as I am currently out of the country. I am writing this message to share my thoughts for the occasion.

Use of probabilistic and statistical methods, to supplement deterministic reasoning,to make sense of the complex realities that one encounters in various contexts is a major step in the progress of mankind. We are now increasingly able to deduce dependable conclusions in a scientific way, rather than depending on hunches, when only partial or sample inputs are available from which we need insights about a broader set-up. The recent decades have witnessed remarkable applications of the theme in various spheres of life. As we proceed, the methods may be expected to be further perfected and ever more applications to be found. It is a matter of great pleasure to note that India has played a pioneering role in the rise of the subject and has been at the forefront in its applications.

This is a wonderful occasion to celebrate the achievements of this new form of knowledge generation. I would like to compliment Ramjas College for organizing such an event for the international World Statistics Day. I send my best wishes for the deliberations, both on my own behalf and on behalf of the National Board for Higher Mathematics, which has endeavored to support Probability and Statistics along with other streams of mathematics.’

S.G. DaniTata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai

Chair, National Board for Higher Mathematics

(Apart from his works in areas of Modern Mathematics, Professor Dani is known for his work on Ancient Indian Mathematics, particularly in highlighting the myth around Vedic Mathematics)

MESSAGE‘I would first like to express my gratitude to Professor Man Mohan Gupta for his tremendous efforts in organizing this event, World Statistics Day at Delhi University. As a statistician of Indian origin practicing for half a century, I have seen great growth in our field, and I have full confidence in our future. The recognition of our contributions by the UNO is a great honor indeed. I wish that I could have joined you all for this momentous occasion and for what will no doubt be a great celebration.’

Muni SrivastavaProfessor Emeritus

University of TorontoToronto, Canada

MESSAGE‘I am very glad to know that the Department of Mathematics & Statistics, Ramjas College, University of Delhi, is celebrating the First World Statistics Day on October 20 & 21, 2010. I regret that I will miss it as I am in USA. I know about WSD, having received a number of communications from ISI. They highlight the programs and have made your Dept. visible all over world. It is a proud moment for all of us. I am indeed very happy that you have taken the lead in this country on celebrating the WSD.

As we all know, the United Nations Statistical Department has declared, for the first time, October 20, 2010 as World Statistics Day and gave a call to the national governments to celebrate the many achievements of official statistics and to strengthen the awareness and trust of the public in cooperation with national statistical services. The International Statistical Institute is launching a new ISI Declaration on Professional Ethics to be presented during a special session on this day at the IAOS Conference in Santiago in Chile. In a broader context, however, we need to ponder over and discuss how statistics has been serving the different sectors of science & technology as well as helping in economic development at the national and international levels during the past decades and how it should shape its role in future.

It is now well recognized that statistics has made inroads in almost every activity of the society. Whether one is concerned with scientific experimentation or conducting large scale sample surveys or gallop polls or concerns with dynamics of agricultural and

…Continued

MESSAGEsocio-economic development or sports or management & decision making or industrial product development etc., one cannot escape statistical issues involved therein. In fact everyone is interested in ascertaining the true picture of the phenomenon in his field and it is the power of statistics that helps in extracting the truth from the data. Users of statistics, however, do not fully comprehend the inherent statistical mechanism and need necessary help from statisticians. There is a need therefore to develop awareness about statistical concepts, in layman’s language, to the public at large. Just as we talk of computer literacy these days, we need to stress statistics literacy as well. This particular Day can be a proper time to launch plans and programs to this end.

I have no doubt, with the two-day comprehensive schedule chalked out by the organizers, particularly by Professor Man Mohan Gupta and his colleagues, the event would be an excellent treat to all concerned.

I convey my very best wishes to one and all for the success of this Convergence 2010 on World Statistics Day.‘

Prem Narain INSA Honorary Scientist

Former Director IASRI, New Delhi

(Professor Narain is known for his work on Markov Chains and Genetical Statistiscs)

MESSAGE‘It is my great honor, on behalf of the Chinese Society for History of mathematics and in my own name, to express my hearty congratulation on the opening of the two day activity to celebrate the World Statistics Day at Ramjas College, University of Delhi.

The subject of statistics seems to be of ancient origin both in China and in India, and scholars from both China and India have made outstanding contributions to the modern development of statistics.

Today, statistics plays more and more important roles in progress of mankind, statistical methods are being widely applied to different fields of science and technology, to economical governance, to environmental protection, etc. I hope that the cooperation and exchanges between scholars of our two countries in this field would be greatly strengthened in future.

I wish cordially your activity a great success, and wish you all good health and happiness.’

Wenlin Li Professor of the Academy of Mathematics and System Sciences

Chinese Academy of Sciences

MESSAGE‘It was very nice of you to have invited me to participate in the first World Statistics Day on October 20, 2010 (and Oct 21st) at its two day event Convergence, 2010 at Ramjas College, University of Delhi. But for the fact that I have certain preplanned unavoidable engagements on the same dates outside Delhi, It would have been a memorable event for me to participate in. Aside from any other reasons, the linkage between the world of Actuarial Science and the academic discipline of Statistics is strong enough for me to be part of the event. If I look back at about 300 years of the world of actuarial science in its organized form as a scientific discipline, I find that many of illustrious men of actuarial science were indeed men of Statistics and Probability. I congratulate the Department of Mathematics & Statistics, Ramjas College of the University of Delhi with organizing this event. While wishing the speakers and the participants an informative and pleasant conference, I do hope that in future in some way the Indian Actuarial Profession (www.actuariesindia.org) will benefit from the contribution of Statisticians.’

Liyaquat KhanFIA President

Institute of Actuaries of India