Posted inStatistics
Statistics Mailbag
Because of my new gig and then my two-week sojourn at Cornell I am way behind in acknowledging all the emails and blog tips I have received. Nearly all stories…
Posted inStatistics
People Who Believe In Heaven Commit More Crimes
This picture decreases rape rates Some people who really ought to know better---but don't---reported on the peer-reviewed paper "Divergent Effects of Beliefs in Heaven and Hell on National Crime Rates"…
Posted inStatistics
Help Heidelberg From Closing!
Today is last day to log on to Heidelberg Restaurant and vote for them to receive a Small Business Grant. The Second Avenue subway construction is killing them. This is…
Posted inCulture
The Great Roberts Ruse—Or Ruin?
The best take on that fateful Thursday came from Ed Morrissey, who quipped: https://twitter.com/EdMorrissey/status/218347286915325954 Now here is the truth: either Roberts is canny or he is a coward. Either he…
Posted inStatistics
Why Do Statisticians Answer Silly Questions That No One Ever Asks?
Julian Champkin, editor of Significance magazine somehow came across the percipient insights of yours truly and asked me to write l'article controversé. Which I did. And with gusto. Champkin, a…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
Teaching Journal: Day 11—Rewrite, Red Wine, Hat Clips
We started by learning that probability is hard and not always quantifiable. For instance, I imagine many of you would have judged it more likely than not that the Supreme…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
Teaching Journal: Day 9—Hypothesis Testing: Part II
A review. We have sales data from two campaigns, A and B, data in which we choose (as a premise) to quantify our uncertainty with normal distributions. We assume the…
Posted inStatistics
Teaching Journal: Day 8—Hypothesis Testing: Part I
Hypothesis testing nicely encapsulates all that is wrong with frequentist statistics. It is a procedure which hides the most controversial assumption/premise. It operates under a "null" belief which nobody believes.…
