Jack Kiefer (mathematician)
Encyclopedia
Jack Carl Kiefer was an American statistician
.
, to Carl Jack Kiefer and Marguerite K. Rosenau. He began his undergraduate studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
in 1942, but left after one year, taking up a position as first lieutenant
in the United States Air Force
during World War II
. In 1946, he returned to MIT, graduating with bachelor's and master's degrees in economics
and engineering
in 1948 under the supervision of Harold Freeman. He then began graduate studies at Columbia University
, under the supervision of Abraham Wald
and Jacob Wolfowitz
, receiving his Ph.D. in mathematical statistics in 1952. While still a graduate student, he began teaching at Cornell University
, remaining there until 1979, when he retired from Cornell and accepted a new position as Miller Research Professor in the Department of Statistics and Mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley
. In 1957, he married Dooley Sciple, a former undergraduate student of his at Cornell, with whom he had two children. Kiefer died of a heart attack in Berkeley, California
on August 10, 1981.
of the American Statistical Association
and of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
(elected 1972) and of the United States National Academy of Sciences
(elected 1975). From 1969–1970 he was president of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics
. In 1973, Kiefer and Michael Fisher
were the first two Cornell faculty elected as Horace White
Professors.
; the American Statistician obituary calls him "undoubtedly the foremost worker in optimal experimental design
". However, he also made significant contributions to other areas of statistics and optimization, including the introduction of golden section search
(his master's thesis work) and the Dvoretzky–Kiefer–Wolfowitz inequality.
Statistics
Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....
.
Biography
Jack Kiefer was born on January 25, 1924, in Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, to Carl Jack Kiefer and Marguerite K. Rosenau. He began his undergraduate studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
in 1942, but left after one year, taking up a position as first lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. In 1946, he returned to MIT, graduating with bachelor's and master's degrees in economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
and engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
in 1948 under the supervision of Harold Freeman. He then began graduate studies at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, under the supervision of Abraham Wald
Abraham Wald
- See also :* Sequential probability ratio test * Wald distribution* Wald–Wolfowitz runs test...
and Jacob Wolfowitz
Jacob Wolfowitz
Jacob Wolfowitz was a Polish-born American statistician and Shannon Award-winning information theorist. He was the father of former Deputy Secretary of Defense and World Bank Group President Paul Wolfowitz....
, receiving his Ph.D. in mathematical statistics in 1952. While still a graduate student, he began teaching at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, remaining there until 1979, when he retired from Cornell and accepted a new position as Miller Research Professor in the Department of Statistics and Mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. In 1957, he married Dooley Sciple, a former undergraduate student of his at Cornell, with whom he had two children. Kiefer died of a heart attack in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
on August 10, 1981.
Awards and honors
Kiefer was a FellowFellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
of the American Statistical Association
American Statistical Association
The American Statistical Association , is the main professional US organization for statisticians and related professions. It was founded in Boston, Massachusetts on November 27, 1839, and is the second oldest, continuously operating professional society in the United States...
and of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
(elected 1972) and of the United States National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
(elected 1975). From 1969–1970 he was president of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics
Institute of Mathematical Statistics
The Institute of Mathematical Statistics is an international professional and scholarly society devoted to the development, dissemination, and application of statistics and probability. The Institute currently has about 4,000 members in all parts of the world...
. In 1973, Kiefer and Michael Fisher
Michael Fisher
Michael Ellis Fisher is an English physicist, as well as chemist and mathematician, known for his many seminal contributions...
were the first two Cornell faculty elected as Horace White
Horace White
Horace White was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was the 37th Governor of New York in 1910.-Life:...
Professors.
Contributions
Much of Kiefer's research was on the design of experimentsDesign of experiments
In general usage, design of experiments or experimental design is the design of any information-gathering exercises where variation is present, whether under the full control of the experimenter or not. However, in statistics, these terms are usually used for controlled experiments...
; the American Statistician obituary calls him "undoubtedly the foremost worker in optimal experimental design
Optimal design
Optimal designs are a class of experimental designs that are optimal with respect to some statistical criterion.In the design of experiments for estimating statistical models, optimal designs allow parameters to be estimated without bias and with minimum-variance...
". However, he also made significant contributions to other areas of statistics and optimization, including the introduction of golden section search
Golden section search
The golden section search is a technique for finding the extremum of a unimodal function by successively narrowing the range of values inside which the extremum is known to exist. The technique derives its name from the fact that the algorithm maintains the function values for triples of points...
(his master's thesis work) and the Dvoretzky–Kiefer–Wolfowitz inequality.