Analysis and Control of Variation: Abuse of Data | IVT

Introduction One common pitfall in decision-making is the incorrect use (abuse) of data. It is common to hear scientists talk about using data to make decisions, but it can be rare to see it employed correctly. This paper tackles the use of data from a different perspective, its abuse. Five abuses of data and the potential outcome of the abuse are detailed. All of the examples in this paper are real, only the names have been changed to protect the not so innocent. Abuse #1: Weak Correlations “Oh, people can come up with statistics to prove anything, Kent. Forty percent of people know that.” –Homer...