The origin of this book was a wish to have a single introductory source to
which we could direct students, rather than having to direct them to multiple
sources. However, it soon became apparent that wider interest existed, and that
potential readers other than our students would appreciate a compilation of some
of the most important tools of intelligent data analysis. Such readers include
people from a wide variety of backgrounds and positions who find themselves
confronted by the need to make sense of data.
Given the wide range of topics we hoped to cover, we rapidly abandoned
the idea of writing the entire volume ourselves, and instead decided to invite
appropriate experts to contribute separate chapters. We did, however, make
considerable efforts to ensure that these chapters complemented and built on
each other, so that a rounded picture resulted. We are especially grateful to the
authors for their patience in putting up with repeated requests for revision so
as to make the chapters meld better.