Unit 4: Correlation and Causation
Text reading and review exercises
Review Chapters 8 and 9 of FPP and do the following review exercises:
Chapter 8 [pages 134-139]: 1, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Chapter 9 [pages 153-157]: 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10
Reading:
"Lies, damned lies and ..." by Sharon Begley,
Newsweek, July 21, 2008, page 51, On Science column.
Document source:
LexisNexis.
Possible essay questions:
- What is the "false discovery rate," and how is statistics used to
improve it?
- Is the "regression analysis" mentioned in the article using a regression line,
or is it more likely the use of the correlation coefficient (which is one
step simpler)? Explain.
- In a parenthetical sentence, Begley describes a problem with
a poll involving John McCain. Describe the problem, as you understand it.