Seife

Seife begins by pointing out that numbers in the news do not inhabit some ideal Platonic realm but result from very fallible measurements that are often based on vague definitions or faulty assumptions.

Charles Seife's "Proofiness," reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Seife calls this error "disestimation," the mathematical sin of underestimating the uncertainties associated with most numbers.

Charles Seife's "Proofiness," reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Seife condemns the 2000 Supreme Court decision forbidding the use of statistical sampling to ascertain the number of households missed by census workers.

Charles Seife's 'Proofiness,' reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Seife begins by pointing out that numbers in the news do not inhabit some ideal Platonic realm but result from very fallible measurements that are often based on vague definitions or faulty assumptions.

Charles Seife's 'Proofiness,' reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

With regard to the latter, Seife urges acceptance of the uncomfortable fact that some races are essentially ties, that the official and meaningless "exact totals" are sometimes overwhelmed by systemic errors in counting, the vagueness of the election laws and the unclear criteria, definitions and protocols governing them.

Charles Seife's 'Proofiness,' reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Polls, of course, play an important role in a journalist's craft (iness), and Seife writes that they are one of the primary sources of proofiness in modern life.

Charles Seife's 'Proofiness,' reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Seife condemns the 2000 Supreme Court decision forbidding the use of statistical sampling to ascertain the number of households missed by census workers.

Charles Seife's "Proofiness," reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

With regard to the latter, Seife urges acceptance of the uncomfortable fact that some races are essentially ties, that the official and meaningless "exact totals" are sometimes overwhelmed by systemic errors in counting; the vagueness of the election laws; and the unclear criteria, definitions and protocols governing them.

Charles Seife's "Proofiness," reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Seife performs it cogently and entertainingly without resorting to arcane mathematics.

Charles Seife's 'Proofiness,' reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010

Seife calls this error "disestimation," the mathematical sin of underestimating the uncertainties associated with most numbers.

Charles Seife's 'Proofiness,' reviewed by John Allen Paulos John Allen Paulos 2010