Frederick Mosteller
Harvard University
December 24, 1916 - July 23, 2006
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Scientific Discipline: Applied Mathematical Sciences Membership Type:
Member
(elected 1974)
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Frederick Mosteller shared the relevance of statistics with a broader public audience than perhaps any mathematician before him. In the 1960s he recorded a television series about statistics for NBC’s “Continental Classroom” that had more than 1.2 million viewers. He also worked with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics to develop new a new curriculum for statistics in secondary school education. Mosteller felt strongly that lessons in statistics should be taught through real-world examples such as sports, medicine, literary forensics, and even coincidence—all of which are examples of the topics he addressed during his career.
Mosteller earned his undergraduate and masters degrees from Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) and his PhD from Princeton University. He worked as a teacher and advisor in support of U.S. military efforts during World War II, and then he accepted a faculty position at Harvard University. Mosteller founded Harvard’s Department of Statistics in 1957, served as its first chair until 1969, and remained on the university faculty in various roles until his retirement in 2003.
Outside of his academic work, Mosteller worked on committees for the National Research Council, the Institute of Medicine, the American Statistical Association, the National Institutes of Health, and other important national groups. He was widely recognized in academia and by scientific and honorary societies for his achievements and contributions to society.
