--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whether statistics be an art or a…" description: "\"Whether statistics be an art or a science... or a scientific art, we concern ourselves little. It is the basis of social and political dynamics, and af..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/497/adolphe-quetelet-60498_accounts_whether-statistics-be-an-art-or-a-scienc_43975.png" --- # Whether statistics be an art or a science... or a… ![“Whether statistics be an art or a science... or a scientific art, we concern ourselves little. It is the basis of social and political dynamics, and affords the only secure ground on which the truth or falsehood of the theories and hypotheses of that complicated science can be brought to the test.” quote by Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/497/adolphe-quetelet-60498_accounts_whether-statistics-be-an-art-or-a-scienc_43975.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/497/adolphe-quetelet-60498_accounts_whether-statistics-be-an-art-or-a-scienc_43975.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/497/adolphe-quetelet-60498_accounts_whether-statistics-be-an-art-or-a-scienc_43975.png) > “Whether statistics be an art or a science... or a scientific art, we concern ourselves little. It is the basis of social and political dynamics, and affords the only secure ground on which the truth or falsehood of the theories and hypotheses of that complicated science can be brought to the test.” [Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Statistics serves as the empirical foundation for evaluating social and political theories, bridging art and science to test hypotheses. **In simple terms:** Statistical evidence validates social theories. Key Takeaway Statistics grounds theory in data. Themes empiricism social science political analysis methodology validation Mood analytical skeptical Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - policy formulation - academic research - public opinion analysis - election forecasting Key Concepts hypothesis testing data-driven reasoning Practical Applications - evidence-based decision making - model validation Questions to Reflect On - How does statistical rigor affect policy outcomes? - What limits arise when data is scarce? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accounts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accounts/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-science/) [Bases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bases/) [Complicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complicated/) [Concern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concern/) [Data](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/data/) [Dynamics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dynamics/) [Falsehood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falsehood/) [Hypotheses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hypotheses/) [Hypotheses Complicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hypotheses-complicated-650826/) [Hypothesis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hypothesis/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Scientific Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientific-art-650825/) [Secure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secure/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Statistics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statistics/) [Statistics Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statistics-art-650824/) [Tests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tests/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [Statistics is the art of lying by means of figures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-stekel/statistics-is-the-art-of-lying-by-means-of-figures/) [Wilhelm Stekel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-stekel/) > [By the help of God and with His precious assistance, I say that Algebra is a scientific art. The objects with which it deals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-khayy-m/by-the-help-of-god-and-with-his-precious-assistance-i-say-that/) [Omar Khayyam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-khayy-m/) > [“Everything you do in customer development is centered around testing hypotheses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-alvarez/everything-you-do-in-customer-development-is-centered-around-testing/) [Cindy Alvarez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-alvarez/) > [Unfortunately, in the field of evolution most explanations are not good. As a matter of fact, they hardly qualify as explanations at all; they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-macbeth/unfortunately-in-the-field-of-evolution-most-explanations-are-not/) [Norman Macbeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-macbeth/) > [The physicist can never subject an isolated hypothesis to experimental test, but only a whole group of hypotheses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-duhem/the-physicist-can-never-subject-an-isolated-hypothesis-to/) [Pierre Duhem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-duhem/) > [Better our hypotheses die for our errors than ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/better-our-hypotheses-die-for-our-errors-than-ourselves/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [“At first he found it amusing. He coined a law intended to have the humor of a Parkinson’s law that "The number of rational…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pirsig/at-first-he-found-it-amusing-he-coined-a-law-intended-to-have-the/) [Robert Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pirsig/) > [I feign no hypotheses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/i-feign-no-hypotheses/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [Hypotheses are the scaffolds which are erected in front of a building and removedd when the building is completed. They are indispensable to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/hypotheses-are-the-scaffolds-which-are-erected-in-front-of-a-building/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“Philosophy, like science, is only a collection of hypotheses, introduced for the usefulness of the ensemble, or for economy of thought.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/philosophy-like-science-is-only-a-collection-of-hypotheses-introduced/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [To rewrite history on the bases of hypotheses which have not materialized is not only a fruitless task, but, in my eyes, meaningless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-monnet/to-rewrite-history-on-the-bases-of-hypotheses-which-have-not/) [Jean Monnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-monnet/) > [We are sorry to confess that biological hypotheses have not yet completely got out of the second phase, and that ghost of ‘vital force’…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-buchner/we-are-sorry-to-confess-that-biological-hypotheses-have-not-yet/) [Ludwig Buchner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-buchner/) > [Hypotheses non fingo. I frame no hypotheses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/hypotheses-non-fingo-i-frame-no-hypotheses/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [In science, each new result, sometimes quite surprising, heralds a step forward and allows one to discard some hypotheses, even though one or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-b-prusiner/in-science-each-new-result-sometimes-quite-surprising-heralds-a-step/) [Stanley B. Prusiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-b-prusiner/) > [The rules and principles of case law have never been treated as final truths but as working hypotheses, continually retested in those great laboratories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-n-cardozo/the-rules-and-principles-of-case-law-have-never-been-treated-as-final/) [Benjamin N. Cardozo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-n-cardozo/) ## More by Adolphe Quetelet > [It would appear... that moral phenomena, when observed on a great scale, are found to resemble physical phenomena; and we thus arrive, in inquiries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolphe-quetelet/it-would-appear-that-moral-phenomena-when-observed-on-a-great-scale/) [Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) > [The average man. The emergence of the concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolphe-quetelet/the-average-man-the-emergence-of-the-concept/) [Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) > [The more progress physical sciences make, the more they tend to enter the domain of mathematics, which is a kind of centre to which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolphe-quetelet/the-more-progress-physical-sciences-make-the-more-they-tend-to-enter/) [Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) > [The determination of the average man is not merely a matter of speculative curiosity; it may be of the most important service to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolphe-quetelet/the-determination-of-the-average-man-is-not-merely-a-matter-of/) [Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) [Explore all 5 Adolphe Quetelet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) ## More Accounts quotes > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [Think of these things, whence you came, where you are going, and to whom you must account.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/think-of-these-things-whence-you-came-where-you-are-going-and-to-whom/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [The Hindus have a peculiar slovenliness in business matters, not being sufficiently methodical and strict in keeping accounts etc.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-hindus-have-a-peculiar-slovenliness-in-business-matters-not-being/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [With the Truman book, I wrote the entire account of his experiences in World War I before going over to Europe to follow his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/with-the-truman-book-i-wrote-the-entire-account-of-his-experiences-in/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. But like all important works of nonfiction, it goes further… This book is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/le-ly-hayslip/a-great-read-an-exciting-frightening-account-of-organized-crime-today/) [Le Ly Hayslip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/le-ly-hayslip/) > [I had a very blessed journey with the upbringing I had. When you're working on sets as a stuntman, you have a firsthand account…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ric-roman-waugh/i-had-a-very-blessed-journey-with-the-upbringing-i-had-when-you-re/) [Ric Roman Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ric-roman-waugh/) > [The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion or in politics, but it is not the path to knowledge; it has no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-suppression-of-uncomfortable-ideas-may-be-common-in-religion-or/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [You've got to exercise. Your health account, your bank account, they're the same thing. The more you put in, the more you can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-lalanne/you-ve-got-to-exercise-your-health-account-your-bank-account-they-re/) [Jack LaLanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-lalanne/) > [No physiologist who calmly considers the question in connection with the general truths of his science, can long resist the conviction that different parts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/no-physiologist-who-calmly-considers-the-question-in-connection-with/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [God puts you where God needs you. You are where you are supposed to be. The job you are doing may not be any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-kushner/god-puts-you-where-god-needs-you-you-are-where-you-are-supposed-to-be/) [Lawrence Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-kushner/) > [Stop trying to treat music like it's a tennis shoe, something to be branded. If the music industry wants to save money, they should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-tweedy/stop-trying-to-treat-music-like-it-s-a-tennis-shoe-something-to-be/) [Jeff Tweedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-tweedy/) > [Anyone who thinks science is trying to make human life easier or more pleasant is utterly mistaken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/anyone-who-thinks-science-is-trying-to-make-human-life-easier-or-more/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [That surely must be a concern to anyone who decides this drug must be given to stop transmissions, again from mother to child, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/that-surely-must-be-a-concern-to-anyone-who-decides-this-drug-must-be/) [Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/) [Browse all 2,677 Accounts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accounts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whether statistics be an art or a science... or a scientific art, we concern ourselves little. 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