Preface to the English edition This monograph Ten Lectur, es on
Statistical and Structural Pattern Recognition uncovers the close
relationship between various well known pattern recognition problems
that have so far been considered independent. These relationships became
apparent when formal procedures addressing not only known prob- lems but
also their generalisations were discovered. The generalised problem
formulations were analysed mathematically and unified algorithms were
found. The book unifies of two main streams ill pattern recognition-the
statisti- cal a11d structural ones. In addition to this bridging on the
uppermost level, the book mentions several other unexpected relations
within statistical and structural methods. The monograph is intended for
experts, for students, as well as for those who want to enter the field
of pattern recognition. The theory is built up from scratch with almost
no assumptions about any prior knowledge of the reader. Even when
rigorous mathematical language is used we make an effort to keep the
text easy to comprehend. This approach makes the book suitable for
students at the beginning of their scientific career. Basic building
blocks are explained in a style of an accessible intellectual exercise,
thus promoting good practice in reading mathematical text. The
paradoxes, beauty, and pitfalls of scientific research are shown on
examples from pattern recognition. Each lecture is amended by a
discussion with an inquisitive student that elucidates and deepens the
explanation, providing additional pointers to computational procedures
and deep rooted errors.