# Tests- Truth or UL? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 21, 2000, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698 "2000-01-21T00:54:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Powers106](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@Powers106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers106)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2000, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/21 "2000-01-22T22:11:00Z")
The headline in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution a few days ago proclaimed that “1 in 3 of women in the world are abused”. Now, I didn’t read the article, nor can I be sure of the exact headline, but it does sound like there were some pretty liberal standards applied (like the rape example above). Curious, applying the same standards (I’m simply guessing) I’m sure that you could also say 1 in 3 men in the world were abused as well. But then, I’m sure that the headline “1 in 3 people in the world are abused” - doesn’t sell as many papers… Anyone read the article? The AJC doesn’t seem to have archived editions on line. ---
**Author:** ![NanoByte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecc23a/32.png) [@NanoByte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NanoByte)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2000, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/22 "2000-01-22T23:41:00Z")
[Here](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/01/21/MN35753.DTL)’s the AP article. What I looked for was a list of the sampled countries. I failed to find it. Same problem as in the question as to whether ethical drugs are worth the price: The interest/acceptance depends on which elements of the mentioned general category we’re talking about. Esq: Not many lawyers and judges stick to the facts either. Haven’t you noticed? Jinx: Well, having found out that 98% of people don’t believe in statistics, and not having time to collect complete data from everyone, I’ve had to fall back on anecdotes. So I’ll list them all here. . . (Oh, I forgot, I got chewed out here, a few times in the past, about some posts whose bytes weren’t too nano.) doc\_miller: I think the number of those being wrong about being above average is 48% of 98%, or only 47%. The original 2% who didn’t claim they were above average probably weren’t wrong, right? (There’s 1% in every crowd.) Poysyn: The continental US isn’t **on** maps; only it’s representation is. (Sometimes I think it’s all on paper, though, and escape to cyberspace.) F. P.: Maybe you have to figure in the percentage of alcohol in the drink. Starving Golfer: But I don’t think the gov’ment would regard me as unemployed, for the purpose of deriving their unemployment stats, assuming I’m seriously looking for work – given that I’m over 65 and receiving retirement Social Security – would they? Ray (alongside average) ---
**Author:** ![NanoByte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecc23a/32.png) [@NanoByte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NanoByte)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2000, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/23 "2000-01-22T23:48:00Z")
I meant: Ray (off to the side of average) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Asbestos\_Mango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@The\_Asbestos\_Mango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Asbestos_Mango)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2000, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/24 "2000-01-23T17:30:00Z")
> [@](#): > > The outfit I worked for did a lot of work for the Pharmaceutical Association of America. Oops, I mean the Pharmeceutical Manufacturer’s Association. Thought I’d better correct that, just in case anyone decided to check on my facts. * * * The trouble with Sir Launcelot is by the time he comes riding up, you’ve already married King Arthur. ---
**Author:** ![Beruang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@Beruang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beruang)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2000, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/25 "2000-01-29T05:11:00Z")
Any statment that begins “the fastest growing…” is almost guaranteed to be pure hype. For example: In 1998, Beruang Flakes sells 1 million boxes. tomndebb Crunchies sells 100 boxes. In 1999, Beruang Flakes sells 1.1 million boxes, an increase of 100 thousand units, or 10%. Tomndebb Crunchies sells 200 boxes, an increase of 100 units, or 100%. Crunchies are obviously the “fastest growing,” no? In 2000, Beruang Flakes is investigated by the feds for insider trading and goes bankrupt, while tomndebb wins the Nobel Prize for web site postings. So what goes around comes around… Actual true story: for a college marketing class, I designed an experiemtn to test experimenter error in customer surveys. I adminstered three surveys in a grocery store. One asked “do you find the beautiful music in this store soothing?” The second asked “don’t you find the muzak in this store annoying?” And the third asked “please rate the music in this store.” No surprise, the mean score for each question varied according to the wording; the results were statistically valid. (The biggest surprise was that most people actually liked the Muzak crap…) * * * “The dawn of a new era is felt and not measured.” Walter Lord ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2000, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/26 "2000-01-30T06:29:00Z")
Don’t forget that the average person has one breast and one testicle. * * * Well, either you’re closing your eyes to a situation you do not wish to acknowledge or you are not aware of the power of the presence of a pool table in your community. Ya’ got trouble my friends! - Prof. Harold Hill Gary Conservatory Gold Medal Class '05 ---
**Author:** ![Fillet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/2acd7d/32.png) [@Fillet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fillet)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2000, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/27 "2000-01-30T01:04:00Z")
Back to the OP - IIRC, one of the principal differences between American education and European education styles (for high school & younger) is that American syllabi tend to cover many topics in little depth, while European syllabi cover fewer topics in greater depth. So depending on the subject one is testing, and on what kinds of questions are asked, you’ll get a different view of who’s better educated. Also, as I see it, European classes end to cover more ground earlier because the idea of attending 4 years of college right after high school is not as ingrained as it is here; from what I’ve observed, Europeans generally head off to work at the age of 18 or 19. ---
**Author:** ![David\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/51bf81/32.png) [@David\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_B)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2000, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/28 "2000-01-31T16:21:00Z")
This example doesn’t involve statistics, but it does involve a major news agency completely blowing it. It’s about the way the Wall St. Journal covered anti-global warming claims: [http://www.reall.org/newsletter/v06/n08/global-warming.html](http://www.reall.org/newsletter/v06/n08/global-warming.html) ---
**Author:** ![WillGolfForFood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/82dd89/32.png) [@WillGolfForFood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WillGolfForFood)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2000, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/29 "2000-01-31T19:21:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by NanoByte: > \*\*Starving Golfer: > > But I don’t think the gov’ment would regard me as unemployed, for the purpose of deriving their unemployment stats, assuming I’m seriously looking for work – given that I’m over 65 and receiving retirement Social Security – would they?\*\* I don’t thing they would - I believe that the fact that you’re collecting Social Security removes you from their “available for work” category (IE, in their eyes, you’re retired). If you’re over 65, actively looking for work, and _not_ collecting Social Security, then in their eyes you’re unemployed. ---
**Author:** ![drollman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f04885/32.png) [@drollman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drollman)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2000, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698/30 "2000-02-01T16:09:00Z")
Why believe any statistic? (Help! This thread has been hi-jacked!) The average persona has less than 10 fingers and less than 10 toes. If you have one foot in boiling water and one foot on a block of ice, the average says you’re normal. Besides 97.3 percent of all statistics are made up. 😉 * * * With God as my witness, I thought turkey’s could fly. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tests-truth-or-ul/6698.md?page=1)