William M. Briggs

California Students To Choose Genders, Bathrooms: Update

A leading academic theory is that "gender" is a construct, where by "gender" the academic means sexual behavior and by "construct" she means something we make up, a decision. If…

Philosophy

On The Probability God Exists

In order not to make the reader sick with jealously, I will not tell him that I sit on the porch on a bright summer morning mere steps away from…

Philosophy

Something From Nothing: Or, A Heavenly Fish Sandwich

So I was sitting on the porch by the lake reading a piece by Trent Horn on the first premise of the kalam cosmological argument for the existence of God,…

Fun

From Claude Shannon To Demonic Mosquitoes To Bluegill

Here's some information for you: this is a statue of Claude Shannon, tucked in-between two unfrequented buildings in tiny Gaylord, Michigan (most buildings are unfrequented here). Shannon's the guy who…

Fun

Good Gnus—PG Wodehouse Hunting Poem

A northern Michigan summer! Time to venture forth out onto the waters and kill something to eat. I'm thinking pike. Wodehouse had gnus in mind. When cares attack and life…

Fun

Happy 50th Bill & Marilyn!

We made rather merry at the party yesterday. So much so that there might not be any fresh posts for days.

Fun Statistics

Two New Dice Games: Animosity & Disdain

Summer and time for doing plenty of nothing. Like playing a rousing game of 10,000, sometimes called Farkle, Dix Mille, or "Didn't we just play that yesterday?" There are many…

Philosophy Statistics

What Regression Really Is

Bookmark this one, will you, folks? If there's one thing we get more questions about and that is more abused than regression, I don't know. So here is the world's…

John M on Trump’s Last Stand: Mea Culpa, Redux — Guest Post by Ianto WattApril 13, 2026
It always annoys me when people try to guess what God is specifically going to do.
JH on Iran Has Caught Covid: A Reason For The WarApril 10, 2026
Would Trump attack China or Russia? Why not? Bullying is wrong. War is wrong. [H]is specialty is obfuscation… lol. And…
JH on Justice Ketanji RoarsApril 10, 2026
Although I have not taught many Black students, I have observed that the most academically talented Black students perform at…
JH on Proof!April 10, 2026
Lincoln’s ”Fragments on Slavery” c. 1854 If A. can prove, however conclusively, that he may, of right, enslave B.—why may…
Brendan P O'Sullivan on Class 85: Proper Scores of Model GoodnessApril 9, 2026
Bill - An opportunity to help fellow Vets! Look at the following - regarding jet fuel exposure to vets -…

William M. Briggs

Trump’s Last Stand: Mea Culpa, Redux — Guest Post by Ianto Watt

Class 85: Proper Scores of Model Goodness

Proof!

Justice Ketanji Roars

Iran Has Caught Covid: A Reason For The War

Class 84: Most Important Measure of Model Goodness

There Is No Solution To Crashing Fertility: Good Times Made Soft Men

Did The Pope Really Say Health Is A “Right”?

All Models Only Say What They Are Told To Say, And AI Is A Model

It’s The End Of The World Again

Belgian Judge Wants To Arrest Little Nate Cofnast Because Cofnast Says Smart People Are Smarter Than Dumb People

Class 83: Why Were Paul Ehrlich’s Predictions So Good (and so Bad)?

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