This paper is from Session 1G: Lies, damn lies, statistics: lessons from past and present for the future
which comes under Topic 1: Data and context in statistics education: towards an evidence-based society
(Tuesday 13th, 11:00-12:30)
The “compleat” applied statistician
Presenter
Abstract
In March of 2007, Discovery Channel released the controversial documentary, “The Lost Tomb of Jesus,” which asserts that a first century tomb in Jerusalem contained the remains of Jesus of Nazareth and members of his family. Included in the documentary is an interview with a statistician who calculated the odds in support of this assertion at 600 to one. As skepticism intensified among biblical scholars, archaeologists, and the Christian community, support of the assertion relied more heavily upon the statistical results. Using the above example, this paper discusses the responsibilities of an applied statistician on a research team: becoming familiar with the subject of the research, scrutinizing every assumption used in the analyses, validating all data, and being sensitive to consequences the statistical results might have on society.
