Thursday 27 March 2008

I Told You So. People Don't Believe Statistics


A while back I wrote to suggest that, contrary to the popular quip, "You Can't Prove Anything with Statistics." Now there is an official UK government survey to demonstrate that, in the main, I was right. The Office for National Statistics in England took a poll of more than 1,000 adults and found "the majority thought figures were manipulated for political purposes."

NO! Gasp! Could that be true?

The poll shows that only 36% of people questioned believed official statistics were accurate. Worse, 84% said they thought the Government twisted the figures when talking politics.

The 36% figure shows a drop from 37% a couple of years ago (2005).

The press release also reportedly found television was the most powerful influence on opinion, with the internet growing rapidly.

At least there is some good news for those of us who love statistics. You can play this hot rap-stats hit from the folks at Johns Hopkins Bio-stats... As my grandson Xander so often exclaims...."ROCK---EN"

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