January 2008 – Page 5 – William M. Briggs

Mr. Word’s definition of the day: to gush

"To make a sentimental or untimely exhibition of affection; to display enthusiasm in a silly, demonstrative manner." -- Webster, 1913. For example, this snippet from today's New York Times editorial.…

Statistics

73.2% of Likely Voters Believe Poll Results

Pollster: Who will you vote for? Civilian: Oh, I don't know; that guy, the tall one. Pollster: I'll put you down for Obama. The elections in Iowa are over and…

Oil prices through time: a well-done graph

Source: Wall Street Journal This image, shrunk 50% from it's original size, is a very well-done statistical graph. It shows, in the pale green line, the inflation-adjusted price of a…

Frank Furedi on the global warming apocalypse

Frank Fuerdi, of Spiked Online, has a delightful article on the daily barrage of panic we hear, in which he says, "In the past year, the threat of doom ?…

Book review

Calculated Risks: How to know when numbers deceive you: Gerd Gigerenzer

Gerd Gigerenzer, Simon and Schuster, New York, 310 pp., ISBN 0-7432-0556-1, $25.00 Should healthy women get regular mammograms to screen for breast cancer? The surprising answer, according to this wonderful…

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When will you auction the movie rights?