"Application of the Logistic Function to Bio-Assays" (1944), Berkson Joseph
It gained further prominence in the 20th century through applications in various fields, including biology and bio-assay. Joseph Berkson's 1944 paper, 'Application of the Logistic Function to Bio-Assay,' was pivotal in popularizing its use for estimating drug potency.
Berkson argued that the logistic function was a more statistically manageable and theoretically sound alternative to the probit function, which assumed that individual susceptibilities to a drug follow a normal distribution.
The logistic function's ability to be easily linearized via the logit transformation simplifies parameter estimation, making it an attractive choice for analyzing dose-response data.
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