Did you know that chicken eggs can influence how computers generate random events? Or that humans can postpone death until after important ceremonial occasions? Or live three to five years longer if they have positive initials, like ACE?
All these 'facts' have been presented with a straight face by researchers and backed up with convincing statistics. In Standard Deviations, economics professor Gary Smith walks us through the various tricks and traps we so often fall into. Today, data is so plentiful and our reliance on computer analysis and AI so entrenched that researchers spend precious little time distinguishing between good, meaningful deductions and rubbish. Not only do others use data to fool us, we fool ourselves.
Drawing on breakthrough research in behavioural economics by luminaries like Daniel Kahneman and Dan Ariely, and taking to task some of the conclusions of Freakonomics, Standard Deviations demystifies the science behind the statistics.
| ISBN: | 9780715655238 |
| Publication date: | 27th February 2025 |
| Author: | Gary Smith |
| Publisher: | Duckworth an imprint of Duckworth Books |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 304 pages |
| Genres: |
Probability and statistics Popular Science Data capture and analysis Artificial intelligence Behavioural economics |
Did you know that chicken eggs can influence how computers generate random events? Or that humans can postpone death until after important ceremonial occasions? Or live three to five years longer if they have positive initials, like ACE?
All these 'facts' have been presented with a straight face by researchers and backed up with convincing statistics. In Standard Deviations, economics professor Gary Smith walks us through the various tricks and traps we so often fall into. Today, data is so plentiful and our reliance on computer analysis and AI so entrenched that researchers spend precious little time distinguishing between good, meaningful deductions and rubbish. Not only do others use data to fool us, we fool ourselves.
Drawing on breakthrough research in behavioural economics by luminaries like Daniel Kahneman and Dan Ariely, and taking to task some of the conclusions of Freakonomics, Standard Deviations demystifies the science behind the statistics.
Standard Deviations features in the following genres: Probability and statistics, Popular Science, Data capture and analysis, Artificial intelligence, Behavioural economics
Standard Deviations is available in Paperback
Standard Deviations was written by Gary Smith and published by Duckworth an imprint of Duckworth Books
Standard Deviations has 304 pages
£9.89