Tag Archives: uncertainty

Five Things You Should Know Before Taking Statistics 101

Of the over two million college degrees that are granted in the U.S. every year, including those earned at accredited online colleges nationwide, probably two-thirds require completion of a statistics class. That’s over a million and a half students taking … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Ten Tactics used in the War on Error

Scientists and other theory-driven data analysts focus on eliminating bias and maximizing accuracy so they can find trends and patterns in their data. That’s necessary for any type of data analysis. For statisticians, though, the real enemy in the battle … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Six Misconceptions about Statistics You May Get From Stats 101

When you learn new things, you can develop misconceptions. Maybe it’s the result of something you didn’t understand correctly. Maybe it’s the way the instructor explains something. Or maybe, it’s something unspoken, something you assume or infer from what was … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Consumer Guide to Statistics 101

Whether you took or are taking an introductory course on statistics, you probably didn’t get to choose from a dozen candidate offerings. You had to take the specific course required for your major. You can, though, evaluate what you got. … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Limits of Confusion

A confidence interval is the numerical interval around the mean of a sample from a population that has a certain confidence of including the mean of the entire population. “Say what?” OK, let’s take it one point at a time. … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Grasping at Flaws

Even if you’re not a statistician, you may one day find yourself in the position of reviewing a statistical analysis that was done by someone else. It may be an associate, someone who works for you, or even a competitor. … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

You’re Off to Be a Wizard

The process of developing a statistical model (https://statswithcats.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/many-paths-lead-to-models/) involves finding the mathematical equation of a line, curve, or other pattern that faithfully represents the data with the least amount of error (i.e., variability). Variability and pattern are the yin and … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

You Can Lead a Boss to Data but You Can’t Make Him Think

The most carefully planned data analysis may not survive the intervention of a boss (or a client or other reviewer), whether well intentioned or not. Your aim may be to generate sound data and conduct a thorough and valid analysis, … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

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

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 43 Comments

It’s All in the Technique

You can’t understand your data unless you control extraneous variance attributable to the way you select samples, the way you measure variable values, and any influences of the environment in which you are working. Using the concepts of reference, replication … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments