William M. Briggs

Every Family Has Children Until They Have A Boy: Probability Stumper

Reader Bryan Davies quoted a poser from Math Overflow (have we heard of that?) which read: In a country in which people only want boys every family continues to have…

Statistics

Scientists Claim Homosexual Men Have Different Faces

In the journal that brought you "Is a Woman's Preference for Chest Hair in Men Influenced by Parasite Threat?"1, "Accurate Identification of a Preference for Insertive Versus Receptive Intercourse from…

Fun Philosophy

What Do You Call Believer in Scientism? Contest

Toby Young at the Spectator ran this tweet yesterday: https://twitter.com/toadmeister/status/402545969956261888 The text (if you can't see) reads: "Is there a name for people who think reason and research evidence alone…

Philosophy Statistics

Observational Versus Controlled Trials

Received this email from a reader: I took on board all I read on your website, and it has created confusion in my mind. I have been reading Ioannidis and…

Philosophy

Dawkins Gets It Wrong Again: Similar Is Not The Same

Richard Dawkins in an article to the New Statesman---the same issue which somebody who obviously wasn't in full possession of his faculties assigned to Dawkins as editor---the Christmas issue, mind---an…

Statistics

We’re 88% Through The International Year Of Statistics

I hadn't any idea we'd even started. But thanks to reader Dan Hughes and his link to the Wall Street Journal story Odds Lot: Statisticians Party Like It's 2.013 x…

Statistics

Nonstatisticians Often Screw Up Statistics

Title stolen from article of same name by Leland Teschler in the trade journal Machine Design. Update Statisticians often screw up statistics, too. See below. The article is the result…

Statistics

Johnson’s Revised Standards For Statistical Evidence

Thanks to the many readers who sent me Johnson's paper, which is here (pdf). Those who haven't will want to read "Everything Wrong With P-values Under One Roof", the material…

C-Marie on The Only Metric That Matters: Or, Pinker’s FollyMarch 17, 2026
FOR CERTAIN, JOHNNO, JESUS IS LORD, AND NO OTHER!!! GOD BLESS, C-MARIE
Johnno on The Only Metric That Matters: Or, Pinker’s FollyMarch 17, 2026
"“How many souls make it to Heaven” is an attribute that can’t be expressed with variable data." We can at…
Johnno on The Only Metric That Matters: Or, Pinker’s FollyMarch 17, 2026
"What does it mean to say that “a religion is true”? IF? does this imply there are fake religions?" Yes.…
Johnno on Lancet Discovers Public Health Is PoliticsMarch 17, 2026
Doctors also eat at McDonald's. I have seen them. I have evidence! I dare say, some even hold stock options…
John M on The Only Metric That Matters: Or, Pinker’s FollyMarch 17, 2026
"How many souls make it to Heaven" is an attribute that can't be expressed with variable data.

William M. Briggs

The Great Effeminization of the Academy

The Only Metric That Matters: Or, Pinker’s Folly

Lancet Discovers Public Health Is Politics

Class 82: Be More Uncertain (About Models)

On Not Reading

The Great Smoothing: Another Reason Not To Fear (or trust) AI

A Synchronicity Or Coincidence? What Is Behind Curious Events?

Class 81: The Second Biggest Error In Time Series

The Paper Test Shows Why AGI Is Not Possible: And Why The Brain Is Different In Kind

Researcher Imagines Weather With No Human Influence: Concludes Climate Change Hurts Incomes

Faith Deposited: Why Godless Science Fails

Class 80: Granger Causality; Per Se & Accidental Time Series; Stationarity

Scientists Seeking To Escape Criticism Run To The Warmth & Comfort Of Bluesky

The Loss of Ephemera — Guest Post by The Blonde Bombshell

Class 79: Time Series Example

The Importance Of Not Making Decisions

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

The Great Effeminization of the Academy

The Only Metric That Matters: Or, Pinker’s Folly

Every Family Has Children Until They Have A Boy: Probability Stumper

Scientists Claim Homosexual Men Have Different Faces

What Do You Call Believer in Scientism? Contest

Observational Versus Controlled Trials

Dawkins Gets It Wrong Again: Similar Is Not The Same

We’re 88% Through The International Year Of Statistics

Nonstatisticians Often Screw Up Statistics

Johnson’s Revised Standards For Statistical Evidence

There Is No Culture Without Inequality: Stove 1

Impose Your Beliefs Before They Impose Theirs

Telekinesis: Ideas In Our Reenchantment & Rectification

The Physics Of Blessings: Ideas In Our Reenchantment & Rectification