How Of Lie With Statistics Essay - 1726 Words

How to Lie with Statistics Reaction Paper L. Sweat Psyc 305-01 Dr. Gray Fall 2016 In How to Lie with Statistics (Huff, 1954), Darrel Huff deciphers statistical examples and explains the means of deception that statistics and statisticians sometimes use to relay false information. Huff also conveys an underlying message of don’t believe everything you’re told, something him and my mother have in common. At first glance, a reader might think that this book will teach people how to actually lie using statistics, but that is not the case. It gives the reader a glimpse or a behind the curtain view of how easily it is to be deceived using numbers and how it is slyly achieved. Ironically he calls the book How to Lie with Statistics almost to tease his audience that the content in this book is not as it appears. To my utmost surprise, I actually rather enjoyed this book. It was a fairly simple read that was filled with new information and showed me how to look closer at statistical figures in the future. The humor was spot on so much, so that I even chuckled aloud occasionally. For the icing on the cake, I even expanded my vocabulary to learn fun words such as rotogravure. One thing I found quite disturbing was the trick used to display averages. Prior to reading this book, I thought that the average automatically meant the mean but it can also be the mode or median. Depending on which average is taken and the nature of what is being averaged, results couldShow MoreRelatedHow to Lie with Statistics: Summary Essay716 Words   |  3 PagesHow to Lie with Statistics† by Darrell Huff was a great book to read for a student like myself that is entering a course in statistics. It gave me the insight that I needed to know what statistics is all about and even the ‘tricks’ about using statistics that I can use when I get older and maybe have an important business job for example were I must present for the company and this book proves to be my savior. Though anyway it’s still very influential. This book wasn’t very hard to get through andRead MoreHow to Lie With Statistics Book Review1047 Words   |  5 PagesHow to Lie with S tatistics Book Summary The book How to Lie with Statistics written by Darrell Huff shows you how statistics are used to mislead; sometimes unintentionally, other times on purpose. It gives the readers the knowledge necessary to intelligently question and understand the story behind the numbers. In other words, it shows the tricks the crooks use, so that honest men can use this knowledge for self defense. I think it’s particularly useful for a manager or an executive to readRead MoreHow to Lie with Statistics by Darrel Huff732 Words   |  3 Pages I just finished reading really interesting book, How to lie with Statistics by Darrel Huff. This books is all about a good cheat sheet to cheat with numbers. The moment someone mentions Statistics, the most often seen reaction is a big yawn or a sigh of disbelief. This is because people come across all kinds of statistical interpretations all the time such as in advertisement or marketing journals. This sense of disbelief is because the reader can not verify the truthfulness behind presented numbersRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book Freakonomics By Steven D. Levitt750 Words   |  3 Pagesthe following questions; â€Å"How forthright (and honest) are people when it comes to sharing their personal information,† and â€Å"what kind of information in personal ads is considered the most (and least) desirable† (74)? Througho ut this section the authors provide statistical data from an online dating site, which encompassed more than 20,000 users. This data showed that not only are Americans untruthful when it comes to creating their online personal ad, but that they lie to increase their likabilityRead MoreIlliteracy : The Interior Demon1126 Words   |  5 Pagespregnant before she gets married. These are just a couple of the consequences of low literacy–the ability to use printed and written information to function in a society, to reach one’s goals, as well as to develop knowledge and potential (Literacy Statistics). As well as these effects, illiteracy is one of the most detrimental issues today because it is directly correlated with criminal activity, leads to an increase in high school dropouts, and costs the healthcare industry large amounts of money.Read MoreEssay on Proceed With Caution: The Danger of Interpreting Statistics935 Words   |  4 PagesStatistics should be interpreted with caution as they can be misleading; they can both lie and tell the truth. Whether or not people notice the importance of statistics, statistics are used by different cohorts of people from a farmer to an academician and a politician in their everyday life. For example, Cambodian famers produce an average of three tons or rice per hectare, connection about eighty per cent of Cambodian population is a farmer, and at least two million people support party A?Read MoreStatistical Inference and Interval Estimate Essay1251 Words   |  6 Pagesproportion) is a range of values in which the parameter is estimated to lie. In Chapter 6, you were assigned to find interval estimates for a population mean and a population proportion. b) Is finding an interval estimate an example of inferential or descriptive statistics? Explain. It is an interval estimate is an example of inferential statistics, as an estimate of the value of the population parameter is made based on sample statistics. c) An interval estimate (23.8, 30.6) is determined for the meanRead MoreSocietys Low Expectations of Teenagers1470 Words   |  6 Pagesground? I’m sure you’re probably thinking, â€Å"How is that possible? Elephants are strong, smart, and have potential to do huge things.† The answer has nothing to do with the twine and the post; but it has everything to do with the twine around the elephant’s mind. The thing is, teenagers are a lot like elephants. We are strong, smart, and have incredible potential, but somehow we are held back by a tiny piece of string, held back by a lie; the lie that teenagers are rebellious, good for nothingRead MoreStatistics1061 Words   |  5 Pages â€Å" Statistics should be interpreted with caution as they can be misleading; they can both lie and tell the truth† Statistics are being used everyday to describe things in working and studying areas to show the productivity of the results they are hoping for. Therefore, people observe and notice alternative objects the world around. Throughout this fact, similarities and differences are such features that could endanger or turned out as advantages. This is called statistics. ExplanationsRead MoreBaseball Operations For The Chicago Cubs1705 Words   |  7 Pagesimprovements to old methods of baseball research. Old-timey statistics are inputted to the sabes machine, and the new output is â€Å"quantified baseball players’ performances based on objective statistical measurements, especially in opposition to many of the established statistics (such as, for example, runs batted in and pitching wins) that give less accurate approximations of individual efficacy† (Never, â€Å"Sabermetrics†). This revolution has given statistics a more clear meaning and true, measurable value for