Sir Cyril Ludowic Burt was revered during his lifetime, but his work was questioned after his death, which occurred on this date in 1971. The British educational psychologist, who used statistical analysis in his studies of child development, was the first member of his profession appointed to the London City Council. He also served as professor of psychology at University College in London and was knighted in 1946. However, research later showed that Burt’s studies assessing the importance of heredity in determining intelligence contained fraudulent data. Today, Burt's earlier work, especially involving factor analysis, is still considered valuable.

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