Q. Why is the flu vaccine like a good experiment?
A. Both are designed to control variants (variance).
Larry Lesser & Dennis Pearl
by Larry Lesser
The ends of lines
Are grouped by rhymes;
Within each pair,
Two treatments shared.
If something lurks,
This plan still works,
But it takes time
To match the lines
And if one leaves….
Q: Why do students find Experimental Design homework frustrating?
A: They're given random assignments!
Larry Lesser
Q: Why is an experiment like a virus?
A: Both have more impact with replication,
and both need to be controlled.
Larry Lesser and Dennis Pearl
An instructor trying to decide how to offer a course
borrowed a strategy from randomized experiments:
heads for face-to-face mode, tails for online.
Now she has a flipped classroom.
Larry Lesser
My roommate and I argued about what to do,
so we used an unbiased strategy from randomized experiments:
heads we play Monopoly, tails we play poker.
The coin toss was a game changer.
Dennis Pearl