(Dis)trusting statistics: a one-page guide

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A numbers expert declares he’ll sum up everything he knows about analyzing statistics on the back of a postcard. Could any TOK teacher NOT instantly spring to the alert? He’s inspired me to attempt my own lean summary: a single page mini-guide on (dis)trusting statistics, useful in our own educational context of Theory of Knowledge. […]

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Correlational data

When we talk about interpreting correlational data, we often rightly stress that correlation does not establish cause and effect. However, it is important not to simply dismiss correlations because of this – as this video from the OU’s Joy of Stats series shows, the scientific attitude to an apparent correlation is to work as hard […]

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Genes, free will, responsibility, murder?

If you  smash your fist into someone’s body are you being aggressive and anti-social, or are you just doing what your genes programme you to do? The idea of genes affecting behaviour isn’t new and isn’t disputed, but the use of certain genes as a mitigating factor in criminal behaviour is a contentious issue. Genes […]

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