Should You Believe It? Statistics in the Media

News accounts of science and scientific ideas are filled with numbers and implicit advice. They also tell a story. Do violent video games lead to violence? Can brain scans read our minds? Does chocolate make us smarter? In contexts as diverse as political surveys, criminal courts and public health, numbers play an increasingly prominent role as data becomes more accessible. Despite our need for clear rendering of numerical information, many media accounts using statistics are misleading. In this presentation, Rebecca Goldin will share some humorous as well as serious stories about statistical bloopers in the media, peppered with suggestions for better communication. Numerical reasoning can be powerful, she says, when we move past politics and morality to clarify what quantitative information actually tells us, what it does not and what it cannot.

WEBINAR SCHEDULE

3:45 – 4:00 pm ET Webinar waiting room opens
4:00 – 5:00 pm ET Talk + Q&A

Registration is required for this free event.

Further instructions and access to join the webinar will be sent to all registrants upon sign up.

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