I have been studying R and SAS recently. Of course, you need sound knowledge of statistics for that and I was sure my knowledge of the subject, picked up as it was about a decade ago when I did my MBA, wasn't upto the mark. My first port of call was, of course, the internet. But I didn't find anything that covered the subject right from the basics like normal distribution and probability to advanced concepts like regression and time series. So I turned to the other known source - namely the secondhand book stalls that had served me well during my Engineering days.

Not surprisingly, I found that the same guy was manning the shop. When I ticked off the list of topics, he asked someone to get some book. When the book (Statistical Methods by S.P. Gupta) was heaved on the counter, I wondered for a moment if I will be able to carry it all the way home. It was thick, bulky and voluminous and I don't say this lightly. I thumbed through the index and it sure covered most of the topics needed. I asked for the usual deal - 50% money back if I returned the book within a year - and got it. I am sure I must have toned more than a couple of muscles in lugging it back home.

When I started reading it though, I was more than impressed. God bless the author for explaining the concepts in such a lucid fashion. Let me tell you that I don't have any intention of ever returning the book. But the reason I am writing about it is this - a priceless gem tucked away somewhere in the middle pages.

I did a double take. Sure, the first edition of the book was out even before I was born and this might have sounded relevant then. But the copy that I am holding in my hands is the 34th edition (2005). Does this make sense today?