William S. Gossett

William S. Gossett was a British statistician best known for developing the t-test, a statistical method used to determine if there are significant differences between the means of two groups. Working at Guinness Brewery in the early 20th century, he needed efficient ways to analyze small sample sizes, as larger samples were impractical in brewing. He published his findings under the pseudonym "Student" to protect his employer's interests, which is why the t-test is often referred to as Student's t-test. His contributions laid the groundwork for modern statistical analysis, particularly in fields like quality control and experimental research.