Re: Maxima by example, volume 2 : Guide to Descriptive Statistics for One-Variable Series

On Mon, Apr 20, 2026 at 11:37 AM Barton Willis via Maxima-discuss <
[email protected]> wrote:

>
> Thanks for sharing the news of Ted Woollett’s passing. I last spoke with
> him about a year ago.
> He and I both moved to Manhattan, Kansas around the same time—he to begin
> graduate studies. Over the years, Ted and I had many enjoyable
> conversations, and we discovered that we had studied under several of the
> same physics professors.
> Ted was an avid reader and spent years in the oh‑so‑cleverly named book
> club, the Litwits.
> We need to be sure that his Maxima work is preserved.
>
Oh, no!  So sorry to hear that.

> --Barton
>
>
> ------------------------------
> *From:* Majzoub, Eric <[email protected]>
> *Sent:* Monday, April 20, 2026 12:51 PM
> *To:* Michel Gosse <[email protected]>; Barton Willis <[email protected]>
> *Cc:* <[email protected]> <
> [email protected]>
> *Subject:* Re: [Maxima-discuss] Maxima by example, volume 2 : Guide to
> Descriptive Statistics for One-Variable Series
>
> Caution: Non-NU Email
>
>
> Ted passed away in October of last year. There is more information about
> him on his web page:
> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://home.csulb.edu/*woollett/__;fg!!PvXuogZ4sRB2p-tU!DJge259WEGd1UVokYk-CpzZZZlqwOYa-du_-Q572jSTiC8t8anM1VXsH3NKdB0PgPhFUO0pbjeu3rrduY7ZjdPg$
>
> Eric
>
> ________________________________________
> From: Michel Gosse <[email protected]>
> Sent: Monday, April 20, 2026 11:44 AM
> To: Barton Willis
> Cc: <[email protected]>
> Subject: Re: [Maxima-discuss] Maxima by example, volume 2 : Guide to
> Descriptive Statistics for One-Variable Series
>
> WARNING: This message has originated from an External Source. This may be
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>
> Oh yes, Ted's works are excellent and are references on Maxima. I'll just
> modify the collection title to avoid any confusion.
>
> The manual is then called "Guide for..." which is different. Sorry and
> apologies, Ted.
>
> Le lun. 20 avr. 2026 à 18:34, Barton Willis <[email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>> a écrit :
> FYI: Ted Woollett is the author of another Maxima by Example<
> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://home.csulb.edu/*woollett/mbe.html__;fg!!PvXuogZ4sRB2p-tU!DJge259WEGd1UVokYk-CpzZZZlqwOYa-du_-Q572jSTiC8t8anM1VXsH3NKdB0PgPhFUO0pbjeu3rrduTf9AAhY$
> > book.
>
> --Barton
> ________________________________
> From: Henry Baker <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>>
> Sent: Monday, April 20, 2026 9:51 AM
> To: Michel Gosse <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>>; David
> Kirkby <[email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>>
> Cc: <[email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>> <
> [email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>>
> Subject: Re: [Maxima-discuss] Maxima by example, volume 2 : Guide to
> Descriptive Statistics for One-Variable Series
>
> Caution: Non-NU Email
>
>
> I would like to add another good reason for statistics in Maxima:
>
>
>
> If I'm *learning* about the math used in statistics, I'd like to utilize
> symbolic algebra *together with* numeric algebra in order to gain insight
> into how the formulae work.
>
>
>
> For example, one might utilize symbolic algebra to gain insight into how
> *sensitive* a result is to its input data.
>
>
>
> I've had this same problem with AI software: when I'm learning how the
> basic math works, I don't care about running models with 10 billion
> parameters -- I'd like to run models with 5, 10, 50, 100 parameters in
> order to gain insight into the math.  In these smaller cases, I might also
> like to play with symbolic parameters.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Michel Gosse <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>>
> Sent: Apr 20, 2026 12:27 AM
> To: David Kirkby <[email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>>
> Cc: <[email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>> <
> [email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>>
> Subject: Re: [Maxima-discuss] Maxima by example, volume 2 : Guide to
> Descriptive Statistics for One-Variable Series
>
>
>
> Obviously, R is the essential software for any scientist working with
> data. Maxima is not the best tool in this case, and we all agree on that.
>
> So, what interest do we have in using Maxima to handle a few simple
> statistical situations?
>
>   1.  If I only need to do a simple data analysis occasionally, it's
> easier to use a tool I already master rather than learning a new one. This
> requires a lot of time and practice... especially if I don't use it
> frequently.
>
>   2.  For my students, they can submit answers in a wxMaxima notebook
> depending on the problems. This allows them to work on several mathematics
> problems across different topics and have all the answers in a single
> document that's easy to use.
>
>   3.  For students, it's also unnecessary for them to learn R when they're
> in middle school or high school. Mastering Maxima is sufficient for
> exploring various mathematics (or physics) problems during their studies
> before the final high school exam.
>
> In conclusion, the question asked relates to choosing a tool to solve a
> problem. Depending on the user's level, the problem's complexity, their
> knowledge, and the availability of software tools, the user will choose the
> most suitable one. Therefore, Maxima is suitable for handling certain
> simple statistical situations, but this depends on the user's experience
> and knowledge. The cost of learning a new software must also be considered.
>
> Maxima does not replace highly specialized tools, and this applies to a
> large part of mathematical domains, but Maxima is a very good tool.
>
> Have a good day
>
> Michel
>
> Le lun. 20 avr. 2026 à 00:12, David Kirkby via Maxima-discuss <
> [email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>> a écrit :
> On Sun, 19 Apr 2026 at 18:16, Michel Gosse <[email protected]<mailto:
> [email protected]>> wrote:
>  i have just finished translated in english the volume 2 :
> Guide to Descriptive Statistics for One-Variable Series
>
> Is Maxima a good tool for statistics? I would have thought R a much better
> tool for that.
>
> Dave.
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-- 
Ray

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