Donald Arthur Berry (born May 26, 1940) is an American

statistician A statistician is a person who works with theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private and public sectors. It is common to combine statistical knowledge with expertise in other subjects, and statisticians may wor ...

and a practitioner and proponent of

Bayesian statistics Bayesian statistics is a theory in the field of statistics based on the Bayesian interpretation of probability where probability expresses a ''degree of belief'' in an event. The degree of belief may be based on prior knowledge about the event, ...

in medical science. He was the chairman of the Department of

Biostatistics Biostatistics (also known as biometry) are the development and application of statistical methods to a wide range of topics in biology. It encompasses the design of biological experiments, the collection and analysis of data from those experime ...

and Applied Mathematics at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center from 1999-2010, where he played a role in the use of Bayesian methods to develop innovative, adaptive

clinical trial Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human subject research, human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel v ...

s. He is best known for the development of statistical theory relating to the design of clinical trials. He is a fellow of the

American Statistical Association The American Statistical Association (ASA) is the main professional organization for statisticians and related professionals in the United States. It was founded in Boston, Massachusetts on November 27, 1839, and is the second oldest continuous ...

and the Institute of Mathematical Sciences. He founded Berry Consultants, a statistical consulting group, with Scott Berry in 2000.About Us
, Berry Consultants. Retrieved 11 May 2009.

Biography

Berry was born in

Southbridge, Massachusetts Southbridge is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,740 at the 2020 census. Although Southbridge has a city form of government, it is legally known as the Town of Southbridge. History The area was in ...

, in 1940, and obtained an

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four ye ...

in mathematics from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

, before moving to

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

where he received an

M.A A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

and

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

in statistics. Berry initially "flunked out" of his undergraduate education at Dartmouth and joined the army, being stationed in

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

, but at the request of his Dean he returned to Dartmouth to complete his undergraduate education in mathematics.

References

External links

* 1940 births Living people American statisticians Bayesian statisticians Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni University of Minnesota faculty Duke University faculty University of Texas faculty Fellows of the American Statistical Association Dartmouth College alumni People from Southbridge, Massachusetts {{US-statistician-stub