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The Phantom Pattern Problem: The Mirage of Big Data
Pattern-recognition prowess served our ancestors well, but today we are confronted by a deluge of data that is far more abstract, complicated, and difficult to interpret. The number of possible patterns that can be identified relative to the number that are genuinely useful has grown
exponentially - which means that the chances that a discovered pattern is useful is rapidly approaching zero.
Patterns in data are often used as evidence, but how can you tell if that evidence is worth believing? We are hard-wired to notice patterns and to think that the patterns we notice are meaningful. Streaks, clusters, and correlations are the norm, not the exception. Our challenge is to overcome our
inherited inclination to think that all patterns are significant, as in this age of Big Data patterns are inevitable and usually coincidental.
Through countless examples, The Phantom Pattern Problem is an engaging read that helps us avoid being duped by data, tricked into worthless investing strategies, or scared out of getting vaccinations.
exponentially - which means that the chances that a discovered pattern is useful is rapidly approaching zero.
Patterns in data are often used as evidence, but how can you tell if that evidence is worth believing? We are hard-wired to notice patterns and to think that the patterns we notice are meaningful. Streaks, clusters, and correlations are the norm, not the exception. Our challenge is to overcome our
inherited inclination to think that all patterns are significant, as in this age of Big Data patterns are inevitable and usually coincidental.
Through countless examples, The Phantom Pattern Problem is an engaging read that helps us avoid being duped by data, tricked into worthless investing strategies, or scared out of getting vaccinations.
- GenresScience
240 pages, Hardcover
Published November 24, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 30, 2022
Q:
the explosion of iPod sales in 2005 and 2006 coincided with an increase in the number of murders in the United States. Were people killing each other in order to get their hands on an iPod? Were iPod listeners driven insane by the incessant music and then murdering friends and strangers? (c)
Q:
the explosion of iPod sales in 2005 and 2006 coincided with an increase in the number of murders in the United States. Were people killing each other in order to get their hands on an iPod? Were iPod listeners driven insane by the incessant music and then murdering friends and strangers? (c)
Q:
June 12, 2024
Damn this book made me wanna work in casual inference
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews