William M. Briggs

Why Is Economics Plagued By Math?

The answer is easy: because math is numbers and numbers are measurement and measurements are necessary to make a subject "scientific" in the modern sense of that word. Why should…

Culture

Stream: Doctors Killing Patients And Harvesting Their Organs

Today's post is at The Stream: When Doctors Kill Patients to Harvest Their Organs. "How's your headache, Mr Jones?" "Gettin' worse, doc. Had it off and on all week." "That's…

Culture

This Week In Doom — WMBriggs Podcast 18 May 2016

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-4itd-EsC8 Joseph Umstatt A look back at the past week in the worst that was in aural form, featuring the music of Joseph Umstatt, Antonio Vivaldi, Nicola Fiorenza, and Luigi…

Book review Statistics

Book Update — Uncertainty & Breaking The Law Of Averages

I'll have the page proofs for Uncertainty mid week and I've until 10 June to turn them back in. (I begin teaching on the 13th.) This puts publication in early…

Philosophy Statistics

Quantum Mechanics, Potentiality, Ontology, Epistemology, & Probability

What is and what is known about what is are two concepts which are often entangled, especially in quantum mechanics (puns intentional). This is one of the subjects which I…

Philosophy SAMT

Summary Against Modern Thought: Failed Arguments For The Eternity Of The World I

See the first post in this series for an explanation and guide of our tour of Summa Contra Gentiles. All posts are under the category SAMT. Previous post. I'm departing…

Fun

Think You Can Simulate A Brain? Think Again

Since is Silly Saturday, a few fun back-of-the-envelope calculations on simulating a brain. I'm drawing from the marvelous, must-read (go do it now) essay "The empty brain: Your brain does…

Statistics

Brits Psychologists Cry “BS!” Over Research Practices. Or, Die P-Value, Die Die Die

In The British Psychological Society's official organ The Psychologist, two gents Tom Farsides and Paul Sparks, call BS on standard research practices. There is a worrying amount of outright fraud…

Neil Jordan on Don’t Take The ‘Long-Covid’ Alzheimer’s Study SeriouslyFebruary 17, 2026
Thank you for the vivid disembowelment of the confidence intervals, which reminds me of my linear estimation statistics class of…
Cloudbuster on AI Is Driving Many Crazy: Our Latest PanicFebruary 17, 2026
When you think of the AI revolution, should it happen, think of "Privatize the profits, socialize the costs." The profits…
John Pate on AI Is Driving Many Crazy: Our Latest PanicFebruary 17, 2026
AI is actually Indians, that is to say in a call centre somewhere someone is monitoring every "autonomous" vehicle/robot/machine except…
C-Marie on AI Is Driving Many Crazy: Our Latest PanicFebruary 17, 2026
The One World Government and the One World Religion really are on their way!, God bless, C-Marie
Rara Avis on AI Is Driving Many Crazy: Our Latest PanicFebruary 16, 2026
Bill: I've got a friend who is enthralled by all the wonderful things AI can do. He is well-connected in…

William M. Briggs

Don’t Take The ‘Long-Covid’ Alzheimer’s Study Seriously

AI Is Driving Many Crazy: Our Latest Panic

Class 78: The Attempt To Turn Correlation Lead Into Causation Gold In Time Series

Desperate Need For Equality: AP Exam Performance

Some Sanity: Experts Sued For Creating Gender Delusions

Why The Recent Claims Of AGI Fail: Plus, A New Test For AGI

Polar Bears Are Doing Fine: Activists, Not So Well

Impossible LSAT Statistics Question

How Women’s Equality In Democracies Changes Voting (And Everything Else)

Class 77: Trendy Trends In Time Series

Who Still Listens To AM Radio?

Scientists Invent New Name For Models: Digital Twins

What Science Says About Making Medication Mandatory

What A Winter

FDA Goes Bayes: It Should Have Gone Probability

Class 76: That’s Not Noise. That’s Signal!

AI: The Earth Is Spinning Faster & Slower (Because “Climate Change”)

Confirmation Bias In The Minneapolis Shooting

Sports Betting Is An Excellent Way To Lose Money

Class 75: A Gentle Introduction To Time Series

The Consent Fallacy