Posted inStatistics
Chinese War Poker: Bluffs Or Solid Threats?
The United States Navy is going to steam into the Yellow Sea and blow up some Korean warships. But friendly, like, and for fun. Points will be scored, and trophies…
Posted inStatistics
The McShane and Wyner Gordie Howe Treatment Of Mann
Many---as in lots and lots---of folks wrote in and asked me to review the McShane and Wyner paper. Thanks! Gordie Howe---Mr Hockey to you---didn't need his stick, his hockey stick,…
Posted inStatistics
Newcomb’s Paradox And Probability
This article was suggested by reader JH who saw it discussed at Massimo Pigliucci's site. When he was at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, William Newcomb devised the following puzzle, which…
Posted inStatistics
The Gold Standard Of Experimentation Exposed As Pyrite
Everybody says the "gold standard" of experimentation, and especially clinical trials, is the randomized controlled trial. A typical view is that "A Randomized Controlled Trial is an experiment or study…
Posted inStatistics
Epidemiology, Causality, And P-Values: Part II
Be sure to read yesterday's post first. One of the screwy consequences of classical statistics is that my odd sample (mixing babies and the patients from the brain cancer ward)…
Posted inStatistics
Epidemiology, Causality, And P-Values: Part I
A standard epidemiological study goes like this: people who have been "exposed" to some thing, say, cell phone radiation, are examined to discover whether or not they have some malady.…
Posted inStatistics
Manzi: What Social Science Does—and Doesn’t—Know
This article is nothing but an extended link to a must-read piece in City Journal. Internet still once daily. Thanks to reader I. for suggesting this topic. If you haven't…
Posted inCulture Statistics
Everybody Has A Mental Disease: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5
I am so far Up North that I heard a radio interview with Uncle Ted Nugnet on the best kinds of arrowheads to bring down feral pigs. Internet still only…