Archive Archives - Page 18 of 25 - Significance magazine

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How well do FIFA’s ratings predict World Cup success?

The first match has yet to kickoff, but it’s not too early for the weeping…

Ray StefaniMay 28, 2014

Archive

How to measure democracy

The European elections on Thursday might not arouse much excitement among the general public but…

Andrew McCullochMay 21, 2014

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Are we in a bubble? Lessons in dissecting the stock market

A dangerous misconception is 'this time it’s different'. This is the line that gave Carmen…

John FryMay 15, 2014

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What if the poor doubled their share of the world’s wealth?

The Occupy movement, that erupted in 2011 and then died with a whimper in 2012,…

Michael MernaghMay 13, 2014

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Is the UK shunned at Eurovision?

It’s that time of the year again. One of the biggest events in Europe’s (and…

Gianluca Baio & Marta BlangiardoMay 8, 2014

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Lessons for the 2015 general election from polling history

The past is, of course, an imperfect guide, as voters and parties change and each…

RobertMay 7, 2014

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Did statistical graphics turn a French economist into a star?

Few idols of the intelligentsia attain broad popularity. But last month Thomas Piketty, an economic…

Stephanie KovalchikMay 6, 2014

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Should affirmative action be replaced with random selection?

The US Supreme Court recently came out with its latest decision related to affirmative action.…

Michael A. LewisMay 1, 2014

Archive

A man who did not win a Pulitzer Prize

Last year I wrote here how people preferred a musical record to … itself. The…

Mikhail SimkinApril 28, 2014

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Can you raise young people’s aspirations to go to university?

Earlier this month the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in the UK published the…

Andrew McCullochApril 22, 2014

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Is pop music eating itself?

Tomorrow is Record Store Day, the day when independent music stores celebrate the concept of…

Oz FlanaganApril 18, 2014

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Where’s a teenager when you need one?

Over the last 10 years or so, universities in England have been working in a…

Andrew McCullochApril 15, 2014

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A history of economic growth in Africa: why measurement matters

In my book - Poor Numbers: how we are misled by African development statistics and…

Morten JervenApril 9, 2014

Archive

Men, old, or old men: the need to report surveys in more detail (or why we need cross-tabulation)

The first same-sex marriages in the UK have not been universally accepted. So says a…

Simon WhiteApril 4, 2014

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How statistics can help in the mission to find MH370

That the Malaysian government, with the help of the UK’s INMARSAT, was able to dramatically…

Simon MaskellMarch 31, 2014

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Olympic speed skating and why all ice is not created equal

The Sochi Olympics added another chapter to the history of Olympic speed skating. An Olympic…

Ray StefaniMarch 27, 2014

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Reports of a blood test for Alzheimer’s have yet to show convincing evidence

The media are always fascinated by medical 'breakthrough' stories: tales of hope that scientists have…

Jon DeeksMarch 24, 2014

Archive

Why taxmen everywhere are watching Colorado’s marijuana industry

Imagine for a moment that you are an incumbent politician, living in the modern world…

Oz FlanaganMarch 20, 2014

Archive

The hot hand effect gets hot again

When statisticians make an appearance in the press or popular culture they are often portrayed…

Stephanie KovalchikMarch 18, 2014

Archive

Malevich in London – but is this art?

Statistics has a much smaller exposure to art than mathematics. The modern era has lost…

Mario Cortina Borja & Neal AlexanderMarch 14, 2014