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The Royal Society: Science in the Making

Referee's Report by Harold Jeffreys on a paper 'Tests of statistical hypotheses which are unbiassed in the limit' by [Jerzy] Neyman

Reference number: RR/W/6/4

Date: 05 February 1938

Description

Paper reference code: A.10

Sectional committee: Mathematics

Suggests the paper may be better suited for publication in Biometrika.

[Original response to Q7 is partially in square brackes and entirely crossed out, and a revised response written on the attached sheet.]

Original response states that the paper is primarily 'elaborate proofs of more or less well-known propositions'. Suggests it may be more suitable for [Egon Sharpe] Pearson's journals or the London Mathematical Society. Acknowledges his opinion may be influenced by a personal bias. Suggests [Alexander Craig] Aitken may be a more suitable referee, and advises against [Ronald] Fisher. Critiques the results and methodology.

Revised response states uncertainty the paper's suitability for publication. Queries the wording of the title and critiques methodology.

[Not published in RS journals but in the Annals of Mathematical Statistics, v. 9, 2, June 1938].

Reference number
RR/W/6/4
Earliest possible date
05 February 1938
Physical description
Standardised form (type E)
Page extent
4 pages
Format
Typescript
Print

Creator name

Harold Jeffreys

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Citation

Harold Jeffreys, Referee's Report by Harold Jeffreys on a paper 'Tests of statistical hypotheses which are unbiassed in the limit' by [Jerzy] Neyman, 05 February 1938, RR/W/6/4, The Royal Society Archives, London, https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/rr_w_6_4/referees-report-by-harold-jeffreys-on-a-paper-tests-of-statistical-hypotheses-which-are-unbiassed-in-the-limit-by-jerzy-neyman, accessed on 14 September 2026

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  • Referee Reports

    This collection contains reports on scientific papers submitted for publication to the Royal Society. Started in 1832 when the system was formalised, it is a record of the origins of peer review publishing in practice.

    Dates: 1832 - 1954

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