Patrick Billingsley
Encyclopedia
Patrick Paul Billingsley (May 3, 1925 – April 22, 2011) was an American mathematician and stage and screen actor, noted for his books in advanced probability theory
and statistics
. He was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota
.
After earning a Ph.D. in mathematics at Princeton University
in 1955, he became a professor of mathematics and statistics at the University of Chicago
, where he served as department chair from 1980 to 1983 and retired in 1994. In 1983 he was president of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics
. He was given the Lester R. Ford Award for his article "Prime Number
s and Brownian Motion
." He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 1986.
He starred in a number of plays at Court Theatre
and Body Politic Theatre in Chicago and appeared in at least nine movies. In 1978 he told Chicago Tribune Magazine: "As a teacher you're used to being on stage."
home. He was survived by his children, Franny, Patty, Julie, Marty and Paul, and his companion, Florence Weisblatt. His wife of nearly 50 years, social activist Ruth Billingsley, died in 2000.
Probability theory
Probability theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with analysis of random phenomena. The central objects of probability theory are random variables, stochastic processes, and events: mathematical abstractions of non-deterministic events or measured quantities that may either be single...
and statistics
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....
. He was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Sioux Falls is the county seat of Minnehaha County, and also extends into Lincoln County to the south...
.
After earning a Ph.D. in mathematics at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in 1955, he became a professor of mathematics and statistics at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, where he served as department chair from 1980 to 1983 and retired in 1994. In 1983 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...
. He was given the Lester R. Ford Award for his article "Prime Number
Prime number
A prime number is a natural number greater than 1 that has no positive divisors other than 1 and itself. A natural number greater than 1 that is not a prime number is called a composite number. For example 5 is prime, as only 1 and 5 divide it, whereas 6 is composite, since it has the divisors 2...
s and Brownian Motion
Brownian motion
Brownian motion or pedesis is the presumably random drifting of particles suspended in a fluid or the mathematical model used to describe such random movements, which is often called a particle theory.The mathematical model of Brownian motion has several real-world applications...
." He was elected a Fellow 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...
in 1986.
He starred in a number of plays at Court Theatre
Court Theatre (Chicago)
The Court Theatre is a professional theatre located in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. The Court Theatre is affiliated with the University of Chicago, receiving in-kind support from the University and operating within the larger University umbrella...
and Body Politic Theatre in Chicago and appeared in at least nine movies. In 1978 he told Chicago Tribune Magazine: "As a teacher you're used to being on stage."
Death
He died in 2011, aged 85, in his Hyde Park, ChicagoHyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
home. He was survived by his children, Franny, Patty, Julie, Marty and Paul, and his companion, Florence Weisblatt. His wife of nearly 50 years, social activist Ruth Billingsley, died in 2000.
Stage plays
- We Bombed in New Haven (1970)
- The TempestThe TempestThe Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...
(1977) - EquusEquus (play)Equus is a play by Peter Shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses....
(1980) - The Birthday PartyThe Birthday Party (play)The Birthday Party is the first full-length play by Harold Pinter and one of Pinter's best-known and most-frequently performed plays...
(1978 and 1985)
Films
- The Fury (1978)
- My BodyguardMy BodyguardMy Bodyguard is a 1980 comedy-drama film released by 20th Century Fox, directed by Tony Bill , and written by Alan Ormsby...
(1980) - Somewhere in TimeSomewhere in Time (film)Somewhere in Time is a 1980 romantic science fiction film directed by Jeannot Szwarc. It is a film adaptation of the 1975 novel Bid Time Return by Richard Matheson, who also wrote the screenplay...
(1980) - The Untouchables (1987)
- The Last Leaf – A Parable of Easter (1983)
Books
- Statistical InferenceStatistical inferenceIn statistics, statistical inference is the process of drawing conclusions from data that are subject to random variation, for example, observational errors or sampling variation...
for Markov ProcessMarkov processIn probability theory and statistics, a Markov process, named after the Russian mathematician Andrey Markov, is a time-varying random phenomenon for which a specific property holds...
es (1961) - Ergodic TheoryErgodic theoryErgodic theory is a branch of mathematics that studies dynamical systems with an invariant measure and related problems. Its initial development was motivated by problems of statistical physics....
and Information (1965) - Convergence of Probability MeasureProbability measureIn mathematics, a probability measure is a real-valued function defined on a set of events in a probability space that satisfies measure properties such as countable additivity...
s (1968) - The Elements of Statistical Inference
External links
- Obituary in the Chicago TribuneChicago TribuneThe Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
- Patrick Billingsley, probability theorist and actor, 1925–2011