MAT 120, Section 1623
Professor R. Meangru
Research Paper #1
October 2, 2006
Statistics are everywhere. Driving in your car, the radio will say, "The polls
yesterday have shown that as the primaries are approaching, 90% of Republicans....". Or
maybe the nightly news just informed you, "There is a 50% chance of rain later in the
week...". Perhaps you read the paper and it cited a recent report saying, "Latest health
research has shown that 1 in 25 women aged 35- 74 years have a 22% chance of...".
Statistical data seems to be everywhere you look and listen these days. Whether you are
reading a newspaper or magazine, listening to the radio or television, or noticing
billboards as you travel to work, you will find announcements and information
everywhere, assisting you in understanding and navigating the world we live in.
Statistics can be defined as "A science of statistical methods: the theory and
techniques for collecting, analyzing and drawing inferences from numerical data" (Gupta,
Sharma, Badalian, 2005, p. 1.1). Other definitions of statistics include "...data or
numbers, the process of analyzing the data, and the description of a field of study"
(Dawson, Trapp, 2004, p. 1). Perhaps a more vague yet digestible and applicable
definition for lay people would be "...a body of methods for making wise decisions in the
face of uncertainty" (Gupta, et al). Although this final definition does not enlighten the
reader as to the extent to which numbers are collected and analysis is performed in
statistics, it does aid in understanding the role it plays in the frequent questions we face in
our society.
As the definitions seem to vary, so does the history of the science of statistics. It
seems that even in the earliest times, people have collected data and analyzed that data to
use for the knowledge and benefit of the population. Research has shown that two
thousand years ago in Judaea and Samaria, head counts of Jewish tribes would be taken
so as to exact taxation for Rome (Cohen & Holliday, p.3). Additionally, on a more
morbid note, during the sweeping deadly plague three hundred years ago, statistics was
used to tally the number of people killed by the epidemic (Cohen, & Holliday, p. 3).
The word statistics that we know today, has roots in Latin (statisticum collegium,
meaning ‘ council of state’), Italian (statista, meaning ‘statesman’ or ‘politician’ ) and
German (statistik, meaning ‘science of state’). Notice, all words are related to state or
government. The original purpose of statistik developed in the 19th century. (para. 4-5,
"Statistics," n.d.). It involved collection of data from the local villages and towns,
classification and analysis of the data. Lastly, this data and the inferences made are then
presented to a central administrative body who can utilize the organized information to
plan socioeconomic, political or military strategies Finally, in the 20th century,
instruments, theories and methods were developed, thereby creating the official science
we know today as statisticparas (para. 6, "Statistics," n.d.).
The work of a statistician is not easily understood or achieved. A master’s degree
in statistics or mathematics is the minimum educational requirement for most
statisticians. The career generally entails planning, design and development of sample
surveys and investigations. Furthermore, statisticians monitor all methodology and
implementation and then draw inferences from all of the results. Statisticians continually
evaluate research results by utilizing statistical theories and statistical tools to create
charts, graphs and draw inferences from their research (para. 2, "Career", n.d.). In
addition to providing the government, agency or firm with statistical results, perhaps
statisticians can further develop the field of statistics through this very research.
Although the career of a statistician seems to be very complex and foreign to most
people, it is easy to see how statistics does in fact apply to every member of our society.
Whether you are a healthcare worker who needs to understand the clinical effects of
chemotherapy, you are a business man who needs to understand economic trends or you
simply are a baseball fan who needs to know if you need rain gear for the game, statistics
applies to you. A more detailed example of the use of statistics could be shown in the
field of social work. A case manager carries a caseload with multiple disadvantaged
families with children struggling with behavior problems. It would greatly benefit those
families and children if the social worker was able to look at recent statistical research,
understand the findings and make accurate, research based recommendations for
appropriate interventions. Another area where statistics could be used is in the field of
environmental biology. There seems to be constant research studies being done on human
behavior and their effect on the health of our planet. The large amount of chemicals, the
pollution created by them and the ultimate decline of our atmosphere perhaps could
decelerate if more people understood and intelligently looked at statistical results of the
research being done on the ecology of our planet.
A very good example of how statistics is applicable and accessible to the general
population is through an article found in TIME magazine, September 25th, 2006. The
article is entitled Live Here and Prosper. The article provides an interactive, three
dimensional bar chart shaped like the United States. Each state is raised or lowered
depending on the average life expectancy that was found in that state. Upon first
assessment of the graph, it is easy to observe that people living in the South generally
have a very short life expectancy compared to people living in California, NY or
Minnesota. Reading and inferring from the statistical information, it seems that city living
can benefit the wealthy due to easy access to healthcare, but unfortunately, the urban
male black population proves to have a significantly lower life expectancy. Similarly, in
less populated states such as South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana, the life expectancy
is also low, likely due to lack of access to healthcare or access to health prevention. There
are an immense number of findings from this particular study, however one general
finding that surprised the researchers was that middle aged adults tend to have the highest
health risk due to chronic medical problems. It was previously thought that young adult
males had the highest risk due to homicide and HIV, however these statistics have shown
otherwise.
It is important to look upon all statistical information as an opportunity to address
any problems that are found to exist or conversely, maintain any behaviors that may
prove to be beneficial. For example, if diet and nutrition are found to be a problem in a
community, efforts should be made to change the food supply and distribution within that
community. If access to healthcare on reservations, in rural or low income areas is the
major problem, programs need to be implemented to facilitate change. Statistics is an
incredibly useful field, and must be looked upon by all active members of society, not
only as a tool to help them succeed personally, as with weather and investments, but on a
grander level of health and longevity of our population.