.

It's been almost 30 years since I last took stats and research methodology courses. Interesting how little of it I remember, but I think I did retain that concept.

Ok, but if she starts talking about chi-square distributions I'm outta here.

The difference between Googling "she is vapid" (with quotation marks) and she is vapid (without quotation marks) as a means of determining how often female entities are called vapid on the interweb is about the same as the difference between using an anemometer and a measuring cup to measure wind speed. One gives results that have a certain degree of both reliability and validity, while the other gives results that have neither validity nor reliability in any degree at all.

The alleged difference between reliability and validity therefore is [i]nihil ad rem[/i].

quote:

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Originally posted by M. Spector:
[b]The difference between Googling "she is vapid" (with quotation marks) and she is vapid (without quotation marks) as a means of determining how often female entities are called vapid on the interweb is about the same as the difference between using an anemometer and a measuring cup to measure wind speed. One gives results that have a certain degree of both reliability and validity, while the other gives results that have neither validity nor reliability in any degree at all.

The alleged difference between reliability and validity therefore is [i]nihil ad rem[/i].[/b]

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I have to agree with that. I also think Sarah Palin is vapid.

Golly. And at first you seemed so nice.

quote:

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Originally posted by M. Spector:
[b]I don't agree with that. Some of her statements are vapid, but I don't think that adjective applies to her as a person. It means dull, or lacking in liveliness.[/b]

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All my life I'v been using it as a synonym for "superficial, empty". Incorrectly, however, as it now appears. [img]confused.gif" border="0[/img]

quote:

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Originally posted by M. Spector:
[b]Heh, heh.

You might also want to check out the difference between "immanent" and "imminent". [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img] [/b]

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Well, I [i]do[/i] know [i]that[/i] - it was just a spelling error. Really [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img]

quote:

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Originally posted by janfromthebruce:
[b]And I googled [i]rhetorical vapidity[/i]without quotes to see if it had [i]internal consistency[/i], and guess what it did![/b]

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My guess would be that it returned a whole bunch of web pages that had nothing whatsoever to do with the phrase "rhetorical vapidity" and therefore produced no relevant statistics at all.

And I just did that search to confirm that my guess was spot on.

I think that the BNL hypothesis that a K car was reliable has been tested and retested. [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img]

I've always maintained, if you can't spend quality time with your family, settle for quantity time.

I have quite a serious hearing loss, not quite made up for with a hearing aid, so listening to theory in math class in high school was a struggle, and I didn't do all that well. Then, I got accepted into college as a mature student a few years after finishing the four year tech program in high school, and things improved dramatically - smaller classes and more of a serious attitude from fellow students. Along with the required courses in Communication Arts, I did Micro and Macro Economics, and that was an eye opener. After I finished college, I worked as a program officer for the Local Initiatives Program in Ottawa (early 1970s) for a few years, saved big bux, and went to university to do a bachelor's in Experimental Psychology, which was mostly advanced statistical analysis. I did quite well, so having had difficulty with math in high school weasn't a harbinger of anything at all. It wasn't until I got out of high school that I was able to really get anywhere. Later on I did a Master's in a completely unrelated field. I have two older brothers who had careers in management and accounting, and I think I could have done the same.

No no. I mean, I got 92% in my economics course. I've never taken calculus in university or high school. But once I was doing a bit of it practically, in my economics course, it came easily to me.

In fact, I found that economics course so interesting that I wanted to major in it. But at Queen's, where I was going at the time, you have to take first year calculus in order to complete the Economics degree - it was a required course. Terribly disappointing to me, but I knew there was no way I could pass a calculus course when I had absolutely no math background to speak of - I can barely do basic algebra.

So I majored in Philosophy instead. [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]

[ 27 October 2008: Message edited by: Michelle ]

quote:

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Originally posted by Michelle:
[b] I can barely do basic algebra.

So I majored in Philosophy instead. [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]

[ 27 October 2008: Message edited by: Michelle ][/b]

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I think if you can master what few rules of highschool algebra there are, that's a big part of calculus nailed down right there. I flunked grade eleven general level math when I was young, and so that, im my mind, reinforced the idea that upper level math was impossible for me. Like you and Boom Boom, I was wrong about that, too.

I feel a 'Nature versus Nurture' debate coming on... [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]

Well, move it if you must but not while I compose, please. If you do, I will become uncomposed. Which is better than decomposed, I suppose.

I've done Reliability and Repeatability studies on measuring equipment at work. We used precision instruments made to measure steel parts. And I found numerous ways to manipuate results.

And don't get me started on Statistical Process Control.

While it's valuable to attempt to quantify something in order to problem solve, it's tricky enough when we are dealing with solid "things". I think it goes irrevocably awry when we try to quantify an abstract concept.

But, we will continue to do this, if only to keep the social "sciences" alive and well.

[img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]

[ 28 October 2008: Message edited by: Tommy_Paine ]

I tried to avoid taking grade 12 math but the high school principal said i wouldn't be one of the 8 students in my grad class of 350 who wasn't taking it. Never really liked math.

Twelve years later (93-94) when I did my B.Ed. there was a mandatory course in educational stats. Spent the night before the exam teaching an older buddy (he was 40, I was 30)the course material while we drank scotch. We both got through the exam the next day. So much for state dependent learning.

Our oldest son is not enjoying math in grade 6. C on his first test while having scored 119 out of 120 on spelling so far this year. My challenge at the moment is to prepare him for a test on geometry tomorrow. He's been developing some good mnemonics but we'll see how his coverage of the material is.

On the upside, he's learning how to calculate odds for Hold 'em hands. [img]smile.gif" border="0[/img] [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img]

Speaking of spelling, Caissa, my worse school experience ever probably was a spelling competition in grade five - that would have been in 1960. The teacher divided the class into rows of two, and alternated giving words to spell. When it came my turn, because I'm very hard of hearing, of course I didn't hear the word I was asked to spell. So, using my ingrained 'coping mechanism', I asked the teacher to spell the word for me, because I couldn't hear it... forgetting I was in a spelling competition, and of course the whole class burst out laughing, and I was throughly humiliated. [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img] [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img] [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img] [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img] [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img]

I get compliments about my daughters, and when I do I say, yeah, well, Darwin took a break....

So, I'm dissapointed no one took the bait about my dig at social sciences. I once considered myself babbles slyest master baiter, but I will have to reconsider.

Anywho, I googled "Cervantes literature" and "Daniel Steel literature".

Apparently, there are 800,000 more people who consider Daniel Steel a bigger part of literature than Cervantes. (1,450,000 Cervantes hits to 2,250,000 Daniel Steel hits)

Happy reading.

Janfromthebruce/smartass, seven hits.

Janfromthebruce/locquacious interesting vibrant, zero hits.

Don't you love imperical data?

[img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]

He's the lesser-known brother of course.

Me, I love Jack Collins. Now, there's some steamy manly novels.