In the numbers explosion all around us in our modern-day dealings, the buzzword is data, as in, “Do you have any data to support your claim?” “The data supported the original hypothesis that . . .” and “The data bear this out. . . .” But the field of statistics is not just about data. Statistics is the entire process involved in gathering evidence to answer questions about the world, in cases where that evidence happens to be numerical data.

Statistics For Dummies is for everyone who wants to sort through and evaluate the incredible amount of statistical information that comes to them on a daily basis. (You know the stuff: charts, graphs, tables, as well as headlines that talk about the results of the latest poll, survey, experiment, or other scientific study.)

This book arms you with the ability to decipher and make important decisions about statistical results, being ever aware of the ways in which people can mislead you with statistics. Get the inside scoop on number-crunching nuances, plus insight into how you can

• Determine the odds
• Calculate a standard score
• Find the margin of error
• Recognize the impact of polls
• Establish criteria for a good survey
• Make informed decisions about experiments

This down-to-earth reference is chock-full of real examples from real sources that are relevant to your everyday life: from the latest medical breakthroughs, crime studies, and population trends to surveys on Internet dating, cell phone use, and the worst cars of the millennium. Statistics For Dummies departs from traditional statistics texts, references, supplement books, and study guides in the following ways:

• Practical and intuitive explanations of statistical concepts, ideas, techniques, formulas, and calculations.
• Clear and concise step-by-step procedures that intuitively explain how to work through statistics problems.
• Upfront and honest answers to your questions like, “What does this really mean?” and “When and how I will ever use this?”

Chances are, Statistics For Dummies will be your No. 1 resource for discovering how numerical data figures into your corner of the universe.

Download Statistics For Dummies

EXCERPT. PDF format, 167KB.

Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: For Dummies
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0764554239
ISBN-13: 978-0764554230

Chapter 1
The Statistics of Everyday Life

In This Chapter

• Encountering statistics in everyday life: what you see and how often you see it
• Discovering how statistics are used in the workplace

Today’s society is completely taken over by numbers. Numbers appear everywhere you look, from billboards telling of the latest abortion statistics, to sports shows discussing the Las Vegas odds for the upcoming football game to the evening news, with stories focusing on crime rates, the expected life span of someone who eats junk food, and the president’s approval rating.

On a normal day, you can run into five, ten, or even twenty different statistics (with even more on Election Night). Just by reading a Sunday newspaper all the way through, you come across literally hundreds of statistics in reports, advertisements, and articles covering everything from soup (how much does an average person consume per year?) to nuts (how many nuts do you have to eat to increase your IQ?). ...

Read Statistics For Dummies Online

FROM THE BAK COVER
Work through real-world problems

From mean to median to probability -- understand the terms and crunch the numbers with ease

Stymied by statistics? No fear -- this friendly guide offers clear, practical explanations of statistical ideas, techniques, formulas, and calculations, with lots of examples that show how these concepts apply to your everyday life. You’ll see how to take the margin of error out of opinion polls and how to analyze and interpret data for improved classroom or on-the-job performance.

The Dummies Way

Discover how to:

• Interpret and critique graphs and charts
• Determine the odds with probability
• Guesstimate with confidence using confidence intervals
• Set up and carry out a hypothesis test
• Compute statistical formulas

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Deborah Rumsey earned her Ph.D. in statistics from Ohio State University (OSU) in 1993. Upon graduating, she joined the faculty in the Department of Statistics at Kansas State University, winning the distinguished Presidential Teaching Award and earning tenure and promotion in 1998.

In 2000, she returned to OSU as the Director of the Mathematics and Statistics Learning Center, where she is today. Deb is the Editor of the “Teaching Bits” of the Journal of Statistics Education; she has also published papers and given professional presentations on the subject of statistics education, with a particular emphasis on statistical literacy (skills for understanding statistics in everyday life and the workplace) and immersive learning environments (environments that promote students’ discovery of ideas on their own).

Her passions include fishing, bird watching, and Ohio State Buckeye football (not necessarily in that order).

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