Teach about confirmation bias. Please.
I am on a mission to spread the news of this transformational (yes!) exercise for all teachers of all subjects, but especially scientists. It is called the Wason* 2-4-6 Task, (I’ve seen it referred to as the 2-4-8 test). It is the best exercise I’ve ever seen for demonstrating the perils of confirmation bias. It [...]
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How to Make Truly Terrible Tables: A Tutorial by David Streiner Part I: Be Too Accurate No, your eyes are not deceiving you; the title of the blog has changed slightly, from “How to Make Truly Terrible Graphs” to “How to Make Truly Terrible Tables.” This reflects the fact that it is possible to [...]
How to Make Truly Terrible Graphs: A Tutorial by David Streiner Part 4: Where’s the Y? In previous blogs, I described how to make terrible graphs using some of the features of leading graphing packages, such as pie charts and 3-D graphs. But, this is unfair to users of other programs that do not [...]
How to Make Truly Terrible Graphs: A Tutorial David L. Streiner, special guest contributor and co-author of excellent statistics texts Part 3 – 3D or not 3D In the two last blogs, we learned the first steps in making truly terrible graphs: by confusing the role of a visual with that of a table, and by [...]
http://www.physiologyweb.com/calculators/michaelis_menten_equation_interactive_graph.html Physiology.web often has very useful calculators and explanations. Their interactive Michaelis Menten equation grapher is a very nice way to explore what can be a difficult concept to grasp.
How to Make Truly Terrible Graphs: A Tutorial David L. Streiner, special guest contributor and co-author of excellent statistics texts Part 2: Pie in the Sky To really screw up visual presentations, use a pie chart. Even better, use two or more of them. In my last blog, we learned the first step in making [...]
This blog, like the book Lab Math from which it springs (incompletely formed), will be about numbers. I will endeavor to:
1. showcase the basic and the practical, not the challenging or even the advanced;
2. provide straightforward guidance for the unenthusiastic ("just do it exactly this way");
3. provide refreshers for those needing refreshment (whether they know it or not.)
Welcome to Lab Math
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