Karl Pearson: A Reader’s Guide

Articles

The articles listed here contain the core of Pearson’s contribution to statistics. Stigler (1986) and Hald are good general guides but additional references are noted after each article. Links are given to the Bibliothèque Nationale for the Phil. Trans. papers.

Karl Pearson (1894) Contributions to the Mathematical Theory of Evolution, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A, 185, 71-110. JSTOR

(Introduces the method of moments and applies it to estimating a mixture of normal distributions:  Magnello (1996))

Karl Pearson (1895) Contributions to the Mathematical Theory of Evolution. II. Skew Variation in Homogeneous Material, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A, 186, 343-414. JSTOR

(Introduces the Pearson system of curves: Magnello (1996))

Karl Pearson (1896) Mathematical Contributions to the Theory of Evolution.  III. Regression, Heredity and Panmixia, Philosophical  Transactions  of  the  Royal Society A, 187, 253-318.  JSTOR

(Develops normal correlation and regression and applies them to heredity:  Aldrich (1995)  Magnello (1998c))

Karl Pearson & L. N. G. Filon (1898) Mathematical Contributions to the Theory of Evolution IV. On the Probable Errors of Frequency Constants and on the Influence of Random Selection on Variation and Correlation, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A, 191, 229-311. JSTOR

(Presents a way of calculating probable errors and applies it to method of moments estimators: Dale  Aldrich (1997))

Karl Pearson (1900) On the Criterion that a Given System of Deviations from the Probable in the Case of Correlated System of Variables is such that it can be Reasonably Supposed to have Arisen from Random Sampling, Philosophical Magazine, 50, 157-175. here

(Introduces the χ2 goodness of fit test. Lancaster  Plackett  Barnard  Magnello (1998c)  Magnello (2005))

These articles were all written before Biometrika was founded. With some other non- Biometrika pieces they were reprinted (without editorial additions) in

E. S. Pearson (editor) (1948) Karl Pearson’s Early Statistical Papers, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.