One of my favorite examples of how statistics can be abused by the ignorant or calculating to lead uninformed folks to an incorrect conclusion, is this story from my old statistics prof:
This actually is true: Whenever sales of ice cream increase, drownings also increase. So should ice cream be banned? The moral of course is: causation is not the same as correlation. There is a definite positive correlation between the number of ice cream sales in an area and the number of drownings in that area. But one does not cause the other. They are both caused by a third, unnamed influence -- hot weather. All too often the press, followed quickly by the government, will take some statistic like that and attempt to turn it into something it isn't. Now can anyone say what makes these statements meaningless without more information (I am not claiming these are accurate, just using them as examples): 1. 10-30% of all highway deaths involve left-handed drivers 2. 70% of all highway deaths involve male drivers 3. 50% of all highway deaths involve alcohol Dick -- The Silver List is a moderated forum for discussing Colloidal Silver. Rules and Instructions: http://www.silverlist.org Unsubscribe: <mailto:silver-list-requ...@eskimo.com?subject=unsubscribe> Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/silver-list@eskimo.com/maillist.html Off-Topic discussions: <mailto:silver-off-topic-l...@eskimo.com> List Owner: Mike Devour <mailto:mdev...@eskimo.com>
