Tag: News
Congratulations, Graduates!
May 15, 2019
Congratulations to all the 2019 high school and college graduates this season! The career opportunities for statisticians are steadily growing, projected to increase 31 percent over the next ten years according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Even better, the field is frequently recognized as one of the very best careers for opportunity, salary...
From Spreadsheets to Headlines: A Day in the Life of Data Journalist Ryan Struyk
January 12, 2018
What is a data journalist? If you ask Ryan Struyk, data reporter and mobile producer at CNN Politics, it’s someone who can turn a data set into breaking news. Data reporters explain important issues, but instead of using human sources to break the news, they work with data sets. This is Statistics spoke with Ryan...
Real or Fake News? Let Statistics Help: 7 Questions to Ask
May 12, 2017
There is a lot of discussion about whether the stories we see in the news are real or fake. Statistical thinking can help you assess the validity of reports, claims from a new study, or other conclusions flashing through your social media feed. Here are a few tips from statisticians – experts in the scientific...
Statistician Finds Twitter Posts Largely Ignore Risks of Hookah Smoking
January 19, 2016
Social media can often portray life through rose-colored glasses, depicting an overwhelmingly positive version of reality. One statistician found this to be the case when it comes to hookah, a form of tobacco smoking that has become more popular among young people in recent years. Melissa J. Krauss, a research statistician at Washington University’s Department...
Statisticians Find “Marquee” Bias Can Influence Selection Sunday
March 02, 2015
Does each “bubble” team have an equal probability of being selected for “March Madness”? A statistical analysis conducted by four Virginia Tech University statisticians confirms the existence of an unacknowledged factor that can influence the NCAA Selection Committee: a team’s marquee potential. This factor can push a marquee men’s basketball team into the NCAA tournament’s...