Homework 0 - HackMD

--- title: 'Homework 0' layout: 'post' label: 'homework' geometry: margin=2cm tags: homework --- # CSCI 0100 Homework #0 ### Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics ##### Due Date: September 20, 2022 at 10 pm ### Instructions Please submit your written responses to Gradescope, as a PDF. Be sure to follow the CS 100 course Collaboration Policy as you work on this and all CS 100 assignments. ### Objectives Students will practice interpreting statistics "in the wild." ### Terms * Probability Distribution * Central Tendency * Spread / Variability * Skew ### Practice ![grades](https://i.imgur.com/PtlDXuU.png) Report the mean, median, and mode of the above dataset. If you were a professor assigning letter grades based on these data, how many students would receive As if you set the minimum score for an A to be the median? And what about the mean? Which choice would maximize the number of students that get an A in the course? ### Problems  1. Read [The Median Isn't the Message](https://people.umass.edu/biep540w/pdf/Stephen%20Jay%20Gould.pdf), by Stephen Jay Gould. What did SJG conclude about the shape of the probability distribution of survivors of mesothelioma? Consequently, what did he infer? Answer these questions, and then write a 1-2 paragraph response to the article. Feel free to write a personal narrative, similar to SJG’s, if something comes to mind that you are comfortable sharing. 2. Search the web for a data set for which the mean and the median tell different stories and/or suggest different courses of action. Write a paragraph about what the differences may suggest, and provide a link to a data set or article illustrating your example of choice. 3. Search the web for an example of data from which political figures draw different, and possibly contradictory, conclusions. Explain how they differ in a paragraph or two, and provide a link to a data set or article illustrating your example of choice. (Choose a different data set than the one you used for the previous question.) 4. Choose a descriptive statistic, like GDP (but not GDP). Give a high-level description of how it is calculated. Then comment on its usefulness vs. its inaccuracy. 5. Read Malcolm Gladwell’s [The Order of Things](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/02/14/the-order-of-things). What are some problems with the U.S News college rankings? How are the U.S. News Rankings a "self-fulfilling prophecy"? **Just for fun**: You might enjoy reading [U.S. News Ranked Columbia No. 2, but a Math Professor Has His Doubts](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/17/us/columbia-university-rank.html). 6. The following articles, [Drinking Coffee May Help You Live Longer, Study Says](https://www.time.com/5326420/coffee-longevity-study) and [Coffee Drinkers Are More Likely To Live Longer. Decaf May Do The Trick, Too](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/07/02/625128383/coffee-drinkers-are-more-likely-to-live-longer-decaf-may-do-the-trick-too), both refer to coffee drinking and longevity. Which title is implying correlation, and which, causation? Does the research referred to by the articles indicate a causal relationship? Explain why or why not.