The Customer Service Survey
Confusing Statistics
Thu - June 28, 2007 10:49 AM in
My formal education is in physics, and I have considerable professional experience in surveying and finance. One common thread between all these fields is the importance of statistics.
I've noticed that many different fields developed the same statistical methods independently from each other, and as a result, the same statistical concepts are called different things in different fields, using different mathematical symbols and notation.
For example, the same statistical distribution is often called a "Gaussian Distribution" by physicists, a "Bell Shaped Curve" by social scientists, and a "Normal Distribution" by mathematicians. In other words, one calls it by the name of one of the guys who developed the math, another uses a descriptive term, and the third makes a value judgment.
(Thanks to David for this particular example).
Consider also the use of the terms "average," "mean," and "expectation value" to refer to identical statistical concepts.
In many cases, the same statistical methods were first developed by guys in the Renaissance trying to figure out how to win at dice, rediscovered in the 19th century by physicists working on thermodynamics, and then discovered a third time by social scientists.
The result is unnecessary confusion and overlap: a "Statistics for Finance" textbook will contain much the same material as a "Statistics for Physics" text, but because they use different names and notation, it may take a while for a student to realize that he's re-learning the same concepts.
Posted by Peter Leppik
For example, the same statistical distribution is often called a "Gaussian Distribution" by physicists, a "Bell Shaped Curve" by social scientists, and a "Normal Distribution" by mathematicians. In other words, one calls it by the name of one of the guys who developed the math, another uses a descriptive term, and the third makes a value judgment.
(Thanks to David for this particular example).
Consider also the use of the terms "average," "mean," and "expectation value" to refer to identical statistical concepts.
In many cases, the same statistical methods were first developed by guys in the Renaissance trying to figure out how to win at dice, rediscovered in the 19th century by physicists working on thermodynamics, and then discovered a third time by social scientists.
The result is unnecessary confusion and overlap: a "Statistics for Finance" textbook will contain much the same material as a "Statistics for Physics" text, but because they use different names and notation, it may take a while for a student to realize that he's re-learning the same concepts.
Posted by Peter Leppik
Posted at 10:49 AM | | | | |