Mmastodon ScienceScience first seen 6 h ago, last 6 h ago, peak #6

Spurious correlations between searches and statistics shared online

Original: # Fun with (bad) # statistics : ⁉️"Google searches for 'Taylor swift' correlates with 'Fossil fuel use in British Virgin

A widely shared post highlights absurd statistical pairings, including a correlation between Google searches for Taylor Swift and fossil fuel use in the British Virgin Islands, and margarine consumption matching Maine's divorce rate. The figures are genuine, but the poster stresses that correlation does not imply causation, using the examples to mock how easily meaningless statistical links can be presented as meaningful.

Why now: People enjoy absurd spurious correlations, and they serve as a popular reminder to be sceptical of statistical claims

Taylor SwiftBritish Virgin IslandsMaine

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Evidence

• # Fun with (bad) # statistics : ⁉️"Google searches for 'Taylor swift' correlates with 'Fossil fuel use in British Virgin islands" ⁉️"Per capita consumption of margarine correlates with The divorce rate in Maine" The correlations are real, but they don’t mean that one caused the… · Wuzzy@cyberplace.social · 3

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