# Super-duper mundane poll: Help out the statistics student! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 8, 2007, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410 "2007-02-08T20:59:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Billdo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billdo/32/315_2.png) [@Billdo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billdo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2007, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/41 "2007-02-08T23:56:32Z")
Male, 39, agree ---
**Author:** ![Jurph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/50afbb/32.png) [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/42 "2007-02-09T00:30:24Z")
[QUOTE=brewha] male 28 strongly agree [/QUOTE] Ditto. And for potential sources of bias, remember you took this poll not as a random sample of the population, but as a random sample of Dopers. We are not normal, and I mean that in the nicest possible way. You’ll probably get more people from each gender skewing to “agree,” because we tend to be academically curious and a little more scholarly than your average person. Also we’re not all Americans, I don’t think. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/43 "2007-02-09T01:29:20Z")
Male 38 Strongly agree. ---
**Author:** ![Crescend](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Crescend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crescend)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/44 "2007-02-09T02:31:37Z")
[QUOTE=Jurph] Ditto. And for potential sources of bias, remember you took this poll not as a random sample of the population, but as a random sample of Dopers. [/QUOTE] Not even remotely. Everyone who responded has been self-selected. This sample is entirely non-random, composed of people who A) Are Dopers, B) Read IMHO, C) Read this thread, and D) Cared enough about the topic to respond. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/45 "2007-02-09T03:13:26Z")
> [@Airblairxxx](#): > > I think I have enough responses, folks! Thanks for all your help! I don’t care. I’m telling you anyway. Male 18 Strongly agree ---
**Author:** ![cerberus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cerberus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cerberus)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/46 "2007-02-09T03:21:52Z")
What, precisely, is the purpose of a non-random, non-population-based, self-selecting, convenience sample for a statistics course? As a case study in how not to do it? :rolleyes: And it’s _mathematics_, dammit. Show some respect. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![pokey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ebca7d/32.png) [@pokey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pokey)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/47 "2007-02-09T04:34:01Z")
female, 35, agree ---
**Author:** ![Ruffian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@Ruffian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruffian)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/48 "2007-02-09T05:28:44Z")
Female 33 Agree (I’d better, I teach the stuff!) ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/49 "2007-02-09T08:13:41Z")
Female, 38, strongly agree. Qualifier for the strongly agree: I love geometry. And as self-selecting goes, this doesn’t seem any worse than polling your family. ---
**Author:** ![Noone\_Special](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noone_special/32/2863_2.png) [@Noone\_Special](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noone_Special)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/50 "2007-02-09T08:45:46Z")
Male, 43, Strongly Agree. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/51 "2007-02-09T12:35:40Z")
Female 40 Strongly Disagree. (I’m a word person.) ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/52 "2007-02-09T14:40:52Z")
I’m such a loser that I was actually thinking about this on the way home yesterday. At my job, quite often people propose that they will obtain information on a certain matter by “surveying” folks. But they seem to lack appreciation for the difficulty of phrasing questions in a way that you can be certain of what the answers mean. For example, the question was “I like math”, and I initially interpreted the option “Strongly disagree” to mean “I really dislike math.” But I realized it does not necessarily mean anything of the sort. Instead, it could just mean that I firmly understand that I do not “like” math. Quite different than actual dislike. Just wanted to clarify a point I feel too many people overlook. The mere fact that you are assigning numerical values to things and “counting” them, doesn’t mean that you are accomplishing anything of value - or even realize exactly what you are quantifying. It can be very difficult to ensure that your respondents asre answering the question you intended to ask. ---
**Author:** ![brendon\_small](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brendon_small/32/17101_2.png) [@brendon\_small](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brendon_small)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2007, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410/53 "2007-02-09T15:13:35Z")
[QUOTE=Airblairxxx] Gender? Age? “I Like Math”–pick one response: **Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree?** [/QUOTE] I don’t know if you have enough yet, but I’ll answer Male 20 Strongly Agree Brendon [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/super-duper-mundane-poll-help-out-the-statistics-student/391410.md?page=2)