Data Analysis: A Bayesian Tutorial

This is the first book on the maximum entropy and Bayesian methods aimed at senior undergraduates in science and engineering. It takes the mystery out of statistics by showing how a few fundamental rules can be used to tackle a wide variety of problems in data analysis. After explaining the basic principles of Bayesian probability theory, their use is illustrated with a variety of examples ranging from elementary parameter estimation to image processing. Other topics covered include reliability analysis, multivariate optimization, least squares and maximum likelihood, error-propagation, hypothesis testing, maximum entropy, and experimental design. As a logical and unified approach to the subject of data analysis, with a self-contained tutorial approach, this work will be valued by instructors and students alike.

D. S. Sivia, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and St Catherine's College, Oxford.