Mina Ossiander facts for kids

Mina Egbert Ossiander is an American mathematician. She is an expert in probability theory, which helps us understand how likely events are to happen. She also specializes in central limit theorems, which are important ideas in statistics. She works as a professor of mathematics at Oregon State University. She also helps teach statistics there.

Her Journey in Education

Mina Ossiander first went to the University of Washington. She studied costume and textile design and earned her first degree in 1978.

Later, in the late 1970s, she went back to the same university. This time, she studied statistics. She wanted to work in consumer protection. At that time, the only statistics program offered was biostatistics. This field uses statistics to study living things. She earned her master's degree in 1982.

Mina became very interested in the math behind statistics. She wanted to understand the deeper rules. So, she continued her studies at the University of Washington. She earned her Ph.D. in 1985. Her special research for her Ph.D. was about how different processes behave in math.

Her Career as a Professor

After finishing her Ph.D., Mina Ossiander did more research. She worked at the University of British Columbia with another mathematician, Cindy Greenwood. She also visited the University of Washington and the University of California, San Diego.

In 1988, she joined the faculty at Oregon State University. This is where she teaches mathematics today.

Her Family Life

Mina Ossiander's father was Frank J. Ossiander. He was also a graduate of Oregon State University. He worked as a biometrician. This means he used math and statistics to study living things, especially for NOAA and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Mina's middle name, "Egbert," comes from her marriage to Gary Egbert. He is a professor of oceanography at Oregon State University. Oceanography is the study of the ocean.