Statistics – Page 178 – William M. Briggs

On The Supposed Newly Discovered “Gay Genes.” Or, The Importance Of Model Skill

Great news! The press and activists are touting a study which claims to have discovered the genes that "make" somebody gay. So get your enwombed baby's DNA scanned and make…

Statistics

Enjoy Coffee? You Could Be A Psychopath. Or, Time For A Two-Year Moratorium Of Questionnaire Science

The headline blared "Enjoy coffee or a gin and tonic? You could be a psychopath: People with dark personalities prefer bitter foods and drinks". And then the bullet points: *…

Statistics

How Many Deaths Does Reading @Voxdotcom Cause?

Bernd Felsche ?sends the breaking Vox news story "How many deaths did Volkswagen's pollution scandal cause? A back-of-the-envelope estimate." This article may represent the triumph of "explanatory" journalism. Volkswagen was…

Statistics

There Is No Such Thing As A 1000-Year Flood

Phrases like "100 year rainfalls" or floods or whatever for whatever period of time are awful. They convey an improper idea of uncertainty. The phrase "X year event" is based…

Statistics

Newly Discovered Ocean Cooling Process Implies Climate Stabler Than We Knew

Today's post is at The Stream: "Newly Discovered Ocean Cooling Process Implies Climate Stabler Than We Knew." A new paper about how certain chemicals produced in the ocean might cause…

Statistics

Stream: Eugenics Will Cure Global Warming

Today's---part one? see below---post is at the Stream: "Academic Calls for a Return to Eugenics (to Battle Global Warming)". The Big Push on global warming has begun. At the recent…

Fun Statistics

Hear Briggs Speak Free on Why You’re Doing Statistics Wrong

Hear Briggs Speak Free! Where by "Free" I mean you pay my expenses. Here are the details. Hear the One And Only William M. Briggs The Statisticians to the Stars!…

Culture Philosophy Statistics

Scientists Pretend They Can Answer Why Some Are More Religious

One thing that nearly always accompanies scientism is historical cluelessness. When somebody adopts the Way Of Science, they fall spell to the idea that only that which is most recent…

Brian (bulaoren) on The Red-Blue Button Dilemma & Its Surprising AnswerApril 29, 2026
As you suggested, I have, so far, read nothing beyond the question. What is not clear to me is...Do the…
Zundfolge on The Red-Blue Button Dilemma & Its Surprising AnswerApril 29, 2026
I have to wonder if the colors were reversed if that would influence people's choice. Because the way the blue…
NLR on The Red-Blue Button Dilemma & Its Surprising AnswerApril 29, 2026
Not sure why the dollar signs did not work and made everything italicized, but the sentence should say: If the…
McChuck on The Red-Blue Button Dilemma & Its Surprising AnswerApril 29, 2026
“Blue pushers are useless cattle. I’d feel no dread knowing they would all die.” Yes. The colors of the buttons…
NLR on The Red-Blue Button Dilemma & Its Surprising AnswerApril 29, 2026
As you point out, the whole thing with these questions is in the initial setup. Whoever invented this one, deliberately…