Synopsis
Some people fear and mistrust numbers. Others want to use them for everything. After a long career as a statistician, Paul Goodwin has learned the hard way that the ones who want to use them for everything are a very good reason for the rest of us to fear and mistrust them. Something Doesn't Add Up is a fieldguide to the numbers that rule our world, even though they don't make sense.
Wry, witty and humane, Goodwin explains mathematical subtleties so painlessly that you hardly need to think about numbers at all. He demonstrates how statistics that are meant to make life simpler often make it simpler than it actually is, but also reveals some of the ways we really can use maths to make better decisions. Enter the world of fitness tracking, the history of IQ testing, China's social credit system, Effective Altruism, and learn how someone should have noticed that Harold Shipman was killing his patients years before they actually did. In the right hands, maths is a useful tool. It's just a pity there are so many of the wrong hands about.
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About the Author
Paul Goodwin is a statistician, an emeritus professor at the University of Bath, and a former adviser to government departments. He has taught courses on statistics for trades union members, art curators, surgeons, actuaries, civil servants, CEOs and sixth formers, among many others. His most recent book is Forewarned: A Sceptic's Guide to Prediction.
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Something Doesnât Add Up: Surviving Statistics in a Number-Mad World
Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
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Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR010387820
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Something Doesn't Add Up
Seller: Bookbot, Prague, Czech Republic
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Hardcover. Condition: As New. Wry, witty and humane, Goodwin explains mathematical subtleties so painlessly that you hardly need to think about numbers at all. He demonstrates how statistics that are meant to make life simpler often make it simpler than it actually is, but also reveals some of the ways we really can use maths to make better decisions. Enter the world of fitness tracking, the history of IQ testing, China's social credit system, Effective Altruism, and learn how someone should have noticed that Harold Shipman was killing his patients years before they actually did. In the right hands, maths is a useful tool. It's just a pity there are so many of the wrong hands about. Seller Inventory # d48cb4b0-fa64-461b-a153-eedf39188eb3
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Something Doesnt Add Up
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. WE LIVE IN A POST-TRUTH WORLD WHERE EVERY DAY AND ON EVERY HAND WE ARE OVERWHELMED BY A PLETHORIA OF MINDNUMNING STATISTICS. THIS BOOK INFORMS ON HOW TO SURVIVE. Seller Inventory # 002173
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Something Doesnt Add Up
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G1788162587I4N00