Best Master’s Thesis Award in Statistics presented to Juho Leppänen

The Finnish Statistical Society has awarded the prestigious Leo Törnqvist Prize to Juho Leppänen for the best master’s thesis in statistics in 2025. The Leo Törnqvist Award is one of the most prestigious recognitions in Finnish statistics, and it is awarded to a distinguished master’s thesis in the field of statistics.

The Finnish Statistical Society has awarded the prestigious Leo Törnqvist Prize to Juho Leppänen for the best master’s thesis in statistics in 2025.

Published

2.11.2026

Juho Leppänen graduated in statistics from the University of Jyväskylä. The winning thesis shows how statistical methods can be used in a variety of ways in the study of culture and human behavior. The thesis examined how the aging of artists affects the acoustics of their music.

This thesis was carried out in collaboration with the Department of Music, Art and Culture Studies. The thesis examined the effect of artist's aging on a certain characteristic of music, acousticness, using data obtained from the Spotify API, including information about artists, albums, and songs. The study found that acousticness decreased as artist aged. However, the marginal effect of age was increasing with respect to acousticness, meaning that as artists grew older, they tended to produce more acoustic music compared to their earlier work.

- I am honored by the recognition. Special thanks go to my thesis supervisors at both departments for their support and encouragement, says Leppänen.

- The idea behind my thesis was to find a topic that truly interested me. My background in music lead me to find it at the crossroads of music and statistics. I encourage statistics students to look for inspiring research topics outside their own department. Many faculties carry out quantitative research where the specialized expertise of a statistician may be needed, explains Leppänen.

Juho Leppänen's master's thesis can be read at: https://jyx.jyu.fi/jyx/Record/jyx_123456789_103443. Leppänen currently works as a researcher at Kela.

Prestigious award goes to the University of Jyväskylä for the 12th time

A thesis completed at the University of Jyväskylä has now been awarded the 12th Leo Törnqvist Prize. The awards reflect the Department of Mathematics and Statistics’ strong position in the teaching and research of statistics.

- These awards highlight the high level of expertise of our students and the long-term efforts of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics to develop high-quality teaching and research, says Associate Professor Sara Taskinen from the University of Jyväskylä, who was the supervisor of Leppänen’s master’s thesis.

The Finnish Statistical Society awards outstanding master's level theses in the field of statistics with a prize named after the great Finnish statistician Professor Leo Törnqvist. The winner is selected by an awards committee consisting of statistics professionals based on presentations made by the thesis supervisors. The Leo Törnqvist award has been awarded since 1978.

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