Why averages are not what they used to be
I had a conversation this morning with Jules Birch about the irritating and downright misleading way statistics are often used. This misuse may be intended or accidental, but the net result is the same. People are fed a distorted picture of reality which influences their view of the world. More worryingly, the misleading meanings ascribed to these statistics are repeated as facts, because they appear to be supported by hard numbers. The world becomes more ignorant and more adamant about…