Resource Library

A poem to teach about various types of variables (categorical versus numerical versus summary statistics) and differentiating them from other concepts like the outcomes in the sample space or the sample size. The poem was composed by Lawrence Mark Lesser of The University of Texas at El Paso.

I don't like the label big data", because that suggests the key measure is how many bits you have available to use. But who cares how much data you have? With too little data, you won't be able to make any conclusions that you trust. With loads of data you will find relationships that aren't real. ... Big data isn't about bits, it's about talent." This is a quote by ZestFinance.com CEO and former Google VP of Engineering Douglas Merrill (1970 -). The quote appeared in his May 1, 2012 blog at Forbes.com.

A song to teach the idea the difference between the population and sample correlation. The lyrics are by Lawrence M Lesser, University of Texas at El Paso in collaboration with Dennis K Pearl, The Ohio State University. The song may be sung to the tune of the children's folk song "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" and like that song may be sung in rounds. Dr. Lesser sings the song in an accompanying MP3 audio file.

...making an appeal to the eye when proportion and magnitude are concerned, is the best and readiest method of conveying a distinct idea. is a quote by Scottish political economist William Playfair (1759 - 1823) often credited as the originator of statistical graphics. The quote is found in the preface to his 1801 book "The Statistical Breviary: Shewing, on a Principle Entirely New, The Resources of Every State and Kingdom in Europe" (the book where he introduced the piechart)

There is a magic in graphs. The profile of a curve reveals in a flash a whole situation - the life history of an epidemic, a panic, or an era of prosperity. The curve informs the mind, awakens the imagination, convinces. is a quote by Henry David Hubbard (1870-1943) who was the first secretary of the National Bureau of Standards; serving from 1901 to 1938. The quote appears in his introduction to the 1939 book "Graphic Presentation" by William Brinton. The entire one-page essay by Mr. Hubbard is an outstanding description of the value of graphical displays and can be found at http://www.archive.org/stream/graphicpresentat00brinrich#page/2/mode/1up

Lest men suspect your tale untrue, Keep probability in view. is a quote by English poet and playwright John Gay (1685 - 1732). The quote is the first two lines of the poem "The Painter who pleased Nobody and Everybody," which is fable number 18 from the from the 1727 collection "Fables" volume 1.

A cartoon to use in discussing the importance of indicating the variability associated with any prediction. The cartoon is the work of Theresa McCracken and appears as #5756 on McHumor.com (appearing here with a statistics-based caption change suggested by Dennis Pearl). Free for non-profit use in statistics course such as in lectures and course websites.

A cartoon for use in discussing outliers. The cartoon is by New Zealand cartoonist Nick Kim (see www.lab-initio.com). This copyrighted cartoon is available for free use in classes and on course webistes at non-profit educational institutions. Commercial inquiries should be directed to the artist (e-mail:nick@lab-initio.com).

No matter how much reverence is paid to anything purporting to be statistics," the term has no meaning unless the source, relevance, and truth are all checked." is a quote by American English professor Tom B. Burnam (1913-1991). The quote is found on page 244 of his 1975 book "The Dictionary of Misinformation".

This is a song suitable for middle school level statistics in reinforcing key elements of the scientific method. College-level use might include playing before a lecture to lighten the mood while setting up. The song's lyrics and music were composed by Jeff Hall audio file is a performance by the scientific jam band (see www.scientificjam.com/scijam2.htm)