Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
The Two-Envelope Problem Solution: Part II
Read Part I first. We are in the peek first game here. The distribution of N When X is odd, and all X are discrete, we know we should always…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
The Two-Envelope Problem Solution: Part I
Another probability "paradox", the two-envelope problem1, goes like this: Before you are two envelopes, A and B. One of them contains $X and the other $2X (which is equivalent to…
Four Chords Is All You Need: The Limited Nature of Pop Music
Coming tomorrow: the infamous two-envelope problem, solved! More mathematical constructivism. But today, as it's Sunday, something light and airy...and non taxing. A "comedy rock" group which bills itself as the…
Posted inStatistics
St Petersburg Paradox; Games and Statistical Decisions; RIP David Blackwell
David Blackwell, who died two weeks ago, was one of the first mainstream statisticians to "go Bayesian." And for that and his unique skill in clearly explaining difficult ideas, we…
Posted inStatistics
How to Fool Yourself—And Others—With Statistics
See the news box to the left. I wrote this long ago and never used it. I do not love it. But since I am so busy, I haven't the…
Posted inStatistics
US Military Fatality Statistics: Have Suicides Increased?
All statistics were gathered from this DOD site. 2010 numbers were current as of 5 June this year; they were not part of the plots below. In 1983, the year…
Posted inCulture Philosophy
‘The Most Dangerous Philosopher in the West’
Extremely busy day, today. I have time for only the merest sketch of a post. The title is not mine, but a label given to Slavoj Zizek, the rock-star communist…
Posted inCulture
Paper or Plastic? Environmentalism as Public Religion
Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of…