Fiction, future, and prediction

I post about statistics and data in medical research. Every post ends with a section “Just one more thing” to provide a concrete data example with code in the R programming language that the reader can try out and examine.

True colors

p-values
Science is often viewed as a reliable machinery for producing facts. However, a surprising number of scientific findings may be incorrect. Even when a low p-value is obtained, it does not guarantee the result is true; in fact, it may still be wrong. This claim can be effectively illustrated with an example using a few colors, revealing how many studies were really true and how many were false. Without skepticism and blindly focusing on the magnitude of a p-value while ignoring other factors, I might just as well believe in Santa Claus.
Dec 15, 2024
Simon Schwab

1901

Statistical computing
Linux
While cleaning out my basement, I found a 20-year-old IBM computer. First, I wanted to get rid of it because the computer has become too old and useless. Instead, I installed a lightweight Linux operating system, R, RStudio, and analyzed the Titanic dataset as a showcase. It worked extremely well. Linux can bring new life to old computer hardware.
Oct 20, 2024
Simon Schwab

I don’t sleep, I dream

Animal studies
Repeated inspection of data
p-values
A 2018 study reported in the methods section that the number of mice was continuously increased until statistical significance was reached. It is very easy to show that such approaches are flawed and belong in the realm of dark statistics because they are more likely to produce a false positive result.
Aug 18, 2024
Simon Schwab

Fake plastic trees

AI
Big data
Biomarkers
p-values
Univariable screening
Data are often overvalued, while statistics are undervalued. New tools and technologies may not revolutionize healthcare but could instead create confusion about the validity of data and evidence. More data is not always better, and an example of misleading statistics is provided at the end.
Jul 9, 2024
Simon Schwab
No matching items