Tag Archives: information

Searching for Answers

Need to find something out, just Google it. Now that Google is a verb as well as a noun, it’s easy. But … It Hasn’t Always Been Easy Adults under 30, Millennials, grew up with smartphones, laptop and tablet computers, … Continue reading

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Looking for Insight through a Window

At a press briefing on February 12, 2002, then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld addressed the absence of evidence linking the government of Iraq with weapons of mass destruction: There are known knowns. There are things we know that we … Continue reading

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It’s Hard to be a Data-Driven Organization

Why is it so Hard? Do you work for a data-driven organization, or one that claims to be a data-driven organization, or one that wants to be a data-driven organization? You probably do, whether you work for a big retailer … Continue reading

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Aphorisms for Data Analysts

An aphorism is a pithy saying that reveals some astute observation or popular notion, whether true or fictitious. “Lies, damn lies, and statistics” you’ve undoubtedly heard. If you’ve taken Stats 101, you probably know that “correlation doesn’t imply causation.” Here … Continue reading

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The Data Dozen

Data can take a variety of forms. Some are readily amenable to statistical analysis and some are better suited to other methods of analysis. When you’re trying to solve some problem or research question, though, you need to use whatever … Continue reading

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A Picture Worth 140,000 Words

Even if it’s been a while since your last statistics class, when you read Stats with Cats: The Domesticated Guide to Statistics, Models, Graphs, and Other Breeds of Data Analysis you’ll figure out that there’s much more to data analysis … Continue reading

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Fifty Ways to Fix your Data

Fifty Ways to Fix your Data (Sing to the tune of “Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover” by Paul Simon) The problem is all about your scales, she said to me The R-squares will be better if you’ve matched ’em … Continue reading

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Ten Fatal Flaws in Data Analysis

1. Where’s the Beef? In a way, the worst flaw a data analysis can have is no analysis at all. Instead, you get data lists, sorts and queries, and maybe some simple descriptive statistics but nothing that addresses objectives, answers … Continue reading

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Samples and Potato Chips

Samples are like potato chips. You’re never satisfied with just one. Every one you take makes you want more. And you’re never sure you’ve had enough until you’ve had way too many.   Betcha Can’t Take Just One One observation. … Continue reading

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It’s All Greek

When Humpty Dumpty uses a word, it means just what he chooses it to mean, neither more nor less. To people not conversant in a technical specialty, it seems that all the experts are Humpty Dumptys. Statistics is no exception. … Continue reading

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