Lies, Damn Lies, and Data Mining

    By Verified Atheist on Wed, 06/12/2013 - 11:06am |

    In the wild (i.e., when we're not talking about contrived examples), data mining involves significant amounts of statistics. There are two common quotes that come to mind when talking about statistics:

    There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics. (Popularized by Mark Twain/Samuel Clemens, who attributed it to Benjamin Disraeli, but with uncertain provenance.)

    and

    The old saying is that “figures will not lie,” but a new saying is “liars will figure.” It is our duty, as practical statisticians, to prevent the liar from figuring; in other words, to prevent him from perverting the truth, in the interest of some theory he wishes to establish. (Carroll D. Wright, a prominent statistician employed by the U.S. government in 1889)
    Orion's picture

    Taking A Look Back At The Star Wars Prequels Part Two: Too Much CGI?

    By Orion on Wed, 06/12/2013 - 7:59am |

    This article is a try at new stuff for my website and for me as a writer - let alone for my contributions to Dagblog. I'm limiting myself here - I'm pretty sure I could actually write a book about Star Wars if I let myself loose. Let me know what you think and thanks, Mike, for encouraging me to do this.

     

    Connections Between Social Media and E-mail

    By ocean-kat on Mon, 06/10/2013 - 4:57pm |

    Given time restrains I didn't intend to blog here atm but I had an  experience with my Hotmail account that may have some interest to people here and apropos as we are now discussing internet privacy issues.

    Orion's picture

    Taking A Look Back At The Star Wars Prequels

    By Orion on Sun, 06/09/2013 - 9:55am |
    Hey guys here is another post from my website Blood Is One - a hip-hop centric but not purely hip-hop pop culture blog. Michael Maiello said he'd like to see the culture content stepped up a bit on Dagblog and I can certainly deliver. I think this topic may appeal to many of you.

    Excellent diagnosis, doc

    By artappraiser on Fri, 06/07/2013 - 5:21pm |

    In response to the New York Times' “The $2.7 Trillion Medical Bill” (“Paying Till It Hurts” series, front page, June 2,)

    Kenneth Prager, a professor of clinical medicine at Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, wrote the following short Letter to the Editor, which was published June 3 along with several others:

    Orion's picture

    A Q & A With Daniel Torok, "Otherside" Director

    By Orion on Fri, 06/07/2013 - 5:04am |
    Like the last article on hip-hop I posted here, this was originally posted at my website Blood Is One. Alot of this is written with the intent of being good enough to turn the heads of local newspapers. Let me know what you think.
     
    Also, when visiting the website, be sure to make yourself familiar with the Amazon.com buttons I've added throughout the website.
    Orion's picture

    Hawaii's Forgotten Internment Camps

    By Orion on Thu, 06/06/2013 - 2:16am |

    I didn't really know how to share this one with you guys. I didn't think it belonged "In The News" but I didn't really have commentary to add to it. Here it is nonetheless.

     

     

    The organization mentioned - Japanese Cultural Center - has a Facebook page.

    Orion's picture

    A Review: The Otherside

    By Orion on Tue, 06/04/2013 - 3:36pm |

    Geologic of the Seattle rap duo Blue Scholars

    The Otherside, a documentary about the growing and unique world of Northwest hip-hop, is an ambitious documentary. Northwest hip-hop is a very weighty topic - rappers from the Northwest are very similar to white rappers: they're a consistent part of the hip-hop aesthetic but there is still something strange about rap from the Puget Sound; it doesn't quite fit with what we are used to hip-hop sounding, acting or looking like.

    Overstock's Patrick Byrne gets his revenge

    By PeraclesPlease on Tue, 06/04/2013 - 9:33am |

    There's been considerable schadenfreude over Patrick Byrne's claims about naked short selling crashing his company Overstock, amongst which includes circular arguments that his company did poorly so he must be a hack, and the gleeful contention by Goldman Sachs et al that naked short selling didn't actually exist (despite massive fails to deliver exceeding outstanding shares). Claims that were echoed by some (one) here.

    Sadly for them, Goldman's lawyer accidentally released a ton of info showing not only did it exist, but that Goldman Sachs had excelled at it.

    jollyroger's picture

    Mayor Rob Ford, Toronto, Too Fat to Smoke Rock

    By jollyroger on Sat, 06/01/2013 - 6:45am |
    I have become famous amongst my friends for my florid contempt for cocaine.

    So much so that when "chopping it up old school" they don't even bother to put out a line or two for me.

    It is overpriced and underpowered.

    I have snorted the red pharmaceutical ye-yo,  and I have smoked free base with Phaedra Grant (NSFW!!!) 

    Elusive Trope's picture

    Preface Draft

    By Elusive Trope on Fri, 05/31/2013 - 9:42pm |

    Broad generalization:  one of the first thoughts triggered by  finding oneself amongst the unemployed is some form of “I suppose I need to update my resume.”  

    Another broad generalization:   the older one gets, the more just the thought of putting one’s resume together becomes a trigger for a reflection upon the unfolding of one’s life.

    Of course, everyone will have their own idiosyncratic kind of reflection, tempered by one’s particular circumstances, such as having a family to support as opposed to being single without any dependents.  

    Help stamp out economists

    By Flavius on Thu, 05/30/2013 - 12:21am |

    For three years two Harvard Economists have enjoyed not only appreciative reviews of their Article  “This time is different” but, better, have watched as its implied policy recommendations have been implemented in country after country to the misfortune of the millions of Greeks,Italians, Irish   and ,yes, Americans  put out of work in an economic storm  .that only Andrew Mellon could have loved. (Joke: A Mellon to H, Hoover “Could you give me a nickel,I want to call a friend?” H.Hoover “Here’s ten cents,call both of them” )

    Richard Day's picture

    WHITE WHITE RABBIT; TRIBUTE TO BACHMANN

    By Richard Day on Wed, 05/29/2013 - 9:22pm |

    Beckerhead and rush and savage and a number of other folks discovered that if they keep on the side of entertainment and skip real political analysis (without the need of fact checking) that they would be rewarded.

    And rewarded they were, by the big bucks.

    jollyroger's picture

    If John McCain thinks it's a good idea...

    By jollyroger on Wed, 05/29/2013 - 8:40am |

    Never one to leave a press release lacking his name, John McCain (R, Getoffmylawnville) is free lancing foreign policy again. As usual, he gives guidance to the thoughtful: "Caution, this way lies madness".

    McCain, last seen in a Baghdad market touting our prior venture into Sunni-Shia sectarianism ( that one went well...) now urges " arm the anti-Assad rebels...what could go wrong?"

    Hint: Think The Thirty Years War.

    trkingmomoe's picture

    Michele Bachmann Announced Just Now That She Will Not Run For Another Term

    By trkingmomoe on Wed, 05/29/2013 - 4:13am |

    This was just posted on her site an hour ago.  I am speechless.  Michele my Bell is hanging up her gloves.  This was released on her site and placed on you tube.  The comments on you tube was shut down right away.  

    SleepinJeezus's picture

    The Cruelty of Children: A few thoughts for the Day After Memorial Day

    By SleepinJeezus on Tue, 05/28/2013 - 6:30am |

    There was a man who lived in my neighborhood when I was a child. He was called "Droogie."

    Droogie lived with his elderly mother in pretty austere circumstances. His father died when he was quite young. Droogie was dangerously violent at times. At other times, he could be seen collapsing into inconsolable tears for no reason at all. In almost all ways imaginable, Droogie was a mess!

    Richard Day's picture

    SAMMY DAVIS, JR. & THE REPUBS!

    By Richard Day on Mon, 05/27/2013 - 9:26pm |


     

    HEDGE FUND PRICK

    Billionaire hedge fund executive Paul Tudor Jones believes mothers don’t make good traders because having babies and breast-feeding are focus and ambition “killers.”

    jollyroger's picture

    The voice of that woman is worth listening to

    By jollyroger on Fri, 05/24/2013 - 9:49am |

    I have seen the better angel of Obama's nature, and her name is Medea Benjamin.

     

    The odd applause line from yesterday's seminal speech which may ( we humbly pray) in future times be cited as the start of sanity's triumph over societal paranoia. By the time Prez elicited audience approval for his concession, the redoubtable Code Pink founder had been forcibly ejected (not for the first time),

    Richard Day's picture

    CONFESSION IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL!

    By Richard Day on Wed, 05/22/2013 - 6:19pm |

    For your penance say three Our Fathers and drink three Bloody Marys!(Conspiracy of Silence)

    Former Vice President Dick Cheney has confessed to changing the CIA’s accurate information on Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction for political reasons.

    You start out with the truth as reported by the intelligence community, and then you turn it into a total distortion once the political types in the White House and some senior folks at the State Department get their hands on it
    trkingmomoe's picture

    Climate Change and Weather Pattern Changes

    By trkingmomoe on Tue, 05/21/2013 - 4:21am |

    I ran across this lecture by Jennifer Francis at the Climate Change Summit from last fall.  She is a professor at Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences Rutgers University.  She presents a very easy to understand talk and well worth the 40 minutes it takes to watch.  I am posting this because of the current extreme weather we are seeing in the Midwest.  The media is going to bring up climate change and the politicains are going to cling to their misinformation that it is not caused by humans.  Prof.

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