Celebrating the life of an admired pioneer in statistics In this captivating and inspiring memoir, world-renowned statistician George E. P. Box offers a firsthand account of his life and statistical work. Writing in an engaging, charming style, Dr. Box reveals the unlikely events that led him to a career in statistics, beginning with his job as a chemist conducting experiments for the British army during World War II. At this turning point in his life and career, Dr. Box taught himself the statistical methods necessary to analyze his own findings when there were no statisticians available to check his work. Throughout his autobiography, Dr. Box expertly weaves a personal and professional narrative to illustrate the effects his work had on his life and vice-versa. Interwoven between his research with time series analysis, experimental design, and the quality movement, Dr. Box recounts coming to the United States, his family life, and stories of the people who mean the most to him. This fascinating account balances the influence of both personal and professional relationships to demonstrate the extraordinary life of one of the greatest and most influential statisticians of our time. An Accidental Statistician also features: * Two forewords written by Dr. Box's former colleagues and closest confidants * Personal insights from more than a dozen statisticians on how Dr. Box has influenced and continues to touch their careers and lives * Numerous, previously unpublished photos from the author's personal collection An Accidental Statistician is a compelling read for statisticians in education or industry, mathematicians, engineers, and anyone interested in the life story of an influential intellectual who altered the world of modern statistics.

乔治·博克斯（George E.P. Box，1919.10.18—2013.03.28）

出生于英格兰格雷夫森德，后移居美国，逝世前是美国威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校统计系以及工业和系统工程系荣退教授。他于1960年在麦迪逊分校创立统计系，并使之成为统计学的重镇之一，后又在1985年联合创立质量和生产率改进中心（CQPI），在美国积极推动质量运动。他曾担任美国统计协会主席和国际数理统计学会主席，并当选英国皇家学会会士。

他单独或合作写作了超过两百篇论文，著有多部涉及实验设计、时间序列分析、统计控制和贝叶斯推断等领域的著作，其中与J. 斯图尔特·亨特和威廉·戈登·亨特合著的《实验员的统计学》现在仍是一部经典之作。他最早提出“稳健性”的说法，其名字也见于多个重要的统计概念，比如博克斯–詹金斯模型、博克斯–考克斯变换、博克斯–本肯设计、博克斯–马勒变换、扬–博克斯检验，以及博克斯–皮尔斯检验等。

他也培育了一大批统计人才，包括刁锦寰、威廉·戈登·亨特、杜安·梅特、保罗·纽博尔德、约翰·麦格雷戈、约翰内斯·勒多尔特、侯文璋等，并经由他们将影响广泛传播到了学术界、教育界和产业界。

作为一名自学成才的统计学家，他独特的成长经历让他尤为注重应用统计学与理论统计学之间的平衡。他在自家地下室长期举办“周一晚啤酒讨论会”，鼓励应用统计学解决各种实际问题。他也积极为各机构提供统计咨询，致力于在各处传播质量改进理念。

他为人幽默，富有魅力，常常诗句歌词信手拈来，妙语频出。“所有模型都是错误的，但有些是有用的”便出自他的笔下。他有过三次婚姻，其中第二任妻子是R.A. 费希尔的女儿。