Statisticians React to the News | Stats + Stories Episode 155

There's a lot of statistical information shared every day in news stories. Everything from COVID cases to economic data is Quantified help us better understand our world. But do news presentations really help us do that? And what do statisticians think about the way journalists are covering their work, that’s the topic behind this episode of Stats and Stories with guest Megan Higgs and Ashley Steel. Megan Higgs is a statistician, freelancer, and owner of Critical Inference. She has experience in academic research and teaching, as well as consulting and scientific collaboration in many disciplines. She believes in the importance of raising awareness about limitations of current uses of statistical methods and inference in scientific practice and communication. Ashley Steel is a statistician and quantitative ecologist with experience in academia, government and international organizations. She wrote “The Truth About Science: A Curriculum for Developing Young Scientists” which guides middle school students through the process of conducting research. She also designed and taught a course on statistical thinking at the University of Washington, Seattle, where she is affiliate faculty. Passionate about the value of probabilistic thinking in every-day decision making, she volunteers at science fairs and supports teachers in understanding statistics.