Numerical Analysis for Statisticians

Ron Thisted's book on computing algorithms for statisticians was one of the most useful and clearly written texts on the topic. There have also been a few other good ones.

The author states in the introduction "My focus on principles ofnumerical analysis is intended to equip students to craft their ownsoftware and to understand the advantages and disadvantages of differentnumerical methods". Lets look at a few topics to see whether theselofty goals were achieved.