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This is a massive exaggeration. Of course you can find correlation over specific periods between random series. But when you're doing real analysis, the serie
by tatsuke95 15y ago
This is a massive exaggeration. Of course you can find correlation over specific periods between random series. But when you're doing real analysis, the series you use aren't random (like the shape of a mountain). The idea is to draw an inference first, then see what the associated data says.
Of course, anyone beyond the base level of wisdom in this field understands this. It just annoys me that people attempt to diminish the value of statistics with an argument like this.
- timwiseman 15y agoI don't think they are trying to diminish the value of statistics at all, but rather point out that it is easy to misunderstand or even deliberately abuse them. This is more a warning to people without an understanding of statistics, because most people out there do not have a deep grasp of the fact that correlation does not imply causation.