治学报国:民国时期的统计留学生

Overseas Chinese Students Studying Statistics from 1912 to 1949

民国时期统计留学生主要求学地分布在英美等国,其中既有专门研究数理统计方法的许宝騄等人,也有利用统计学方法研究生物学、经济学、教育学、社会学、心理学等问题的朱君毅、陈达、吴定良等人。这批统计留学生求学于当时的世界统计中心或顶尖大学,其中不乏令世界统计学界为之瞩目的杰出人才,以相对较小的规模取得了比肩国际一流水平的学术成就,为世界统计学发展贡献了中国智慧。他们的教育背景和学术水平,奠定了我国近代统计教育的较高起点和坚实基础,值得学术界深入挖掘和研究。其学术报国的家国情怀,至今仍是激励后辈学人的精神力量。

Overseas Chinese students from 1912-1949 studied statistics mostly in the United Kingdom and the United States.Among them are students like Pao-Lu Hsu,who focused on the theory of mathematical statistics,as well as Ph.D.candidates in applied statistics including Pinkwei Chu,Ta Chen and Ting-Liang Woo,whose research mainly involved applying statistical methodology to solve real-world problems in a variety of fields including biology,economics,education,sociology,and psychology.These overseas students may have been small in numbers,but they were all enrolled in renowned statistical institutions or universities around the globe,and have made remarkable academic achievements that drew the attention of the statistical world.This small but distinguished group of scholars contributed China’s wisdom to global statistics.Their educational background and academic achievements established a higher starting point and solid foundation for modern statistical education in China,and they are worthy of in-depth exploration and research by the academic community.They continue to serve as an inspiration to later generations of statistics students with their academic patriotism.