Portland Public Library

Numbers rule your world, the hidden influence of probability and statistics on everything you do, Kaiser Fung

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

illustrations

index present

non fiction

Numbers rule your world

bibliography

426811960

Kaiser Fung

the hidden influence of probability and statistics on everything you do

What are the odds you will win the lottery? How long will your kids wait in line at Disney World? Who decides that "standardized tests" are fair? Why do highway engineers build slow moving ramps? What does it mean, statistically, to be an "Average Joe"? In the popular tradition of eye opening bestsellers like Freakonomics, The Tipping Point, and Super Crunchers, this book from a renowned statistician and blogger takes you inside the hidden world of facts and figures that affect you every day, in every way. These are the statistics that rule your life, your job, your commute, your vacation, your food, your health, your money, and your success. This is how engineers calculate your quality of living, how corporations determine your needs, and how politicians estimate your opinions. These are the numbers you never think about, even though they play a crucial role in every single aspect of your life

Introduction -- Fast passes are to slow merges : the discontent of being averaged -- Bagged spinach is to bad score : the virtue of being wrong -- Item bank is to risk pool : the dilemma of being together -- Timid testers are to magic lassos : the sway of being asymmetric -- Jet crashes are to jackpots : the power of being impossible -- Conclusion