An Asymmetric Probability Function
J. J. Slade · Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers · 1936
In engineering problems that require statistical analysis, such as studies of rainfall and run-off, the data are frequently too meager to allow the use of the elaborate methods developed by Karl Pearson, or the Danish statisticians; and yet, the asymmetries in the frequency distributions associated with these problems are usually sufficiently marked to place the investigation in a field definitely outside that of the simple Gaussian theory. Unfortunately, where the basic probability function is other than the “normal curve”, the determination of the constants involved, as well as the graduation of the data, generally becomes a difficult task. Furthermore, unless the data are very complete, the final results will seldom have meaning because of the magnitude of the probable errors of the parameters involved.