Chapter #1 - 09/09/24 Flashcards
the benefits and risks of using statistics
how can you use data to make decisions in your life?
by looking at facts and numbers to guide your choices
what is an observational study ?
merely observe things about our sample (do not control the effect of other factors)
what is a randomized experiment ?
randomly assign participants to one of various treatment groups (define a cause-an-effect relationship)
differentiate between an observational study vs a randomized experiment
- an observational study, researchers just watch and collect data without changing anything. They observe what naturally happens.
- a randomized experiment, researchers actively change something (like giving different treatments) and randomly assign participants to groups to see the effects of those changes.
explain why cause-an-effect conclusions cannot be made from observational studies
because researchers are just watching what happens without controlling any variables. Other factors (confounding variables) might influence the results, so you can’t be sure which factor caused the effect.
what is a cause-an-effect conclusion ?
A cause-and-effect relationship is when one thing (the cause) makes something else happen (the effect)
what is a representative sample ?
is a small group that accurately reflects the larger group it comes from.
(For example, if you want to know what all students in a school think about something, you pick a group of students that represent the different ages, genders, and backgrounds of the whole school. This way, the sample gives results that are similar to what you’d find if you asked everyone.)
what is meant by natural variability ?
Natural variability refers to the normal differences or changes that occur naturally in things like people, animals, or the environment.
(For example, people’s heights or temperatures throughout the day can vary naturally without any outside influence. It’s the normal variation found in the real world.)
what is statistics ?
all the tools we need to have in order to make a decision
FILL IN THE BLANK
_________ is a collection of procedures and principles for gaining, analyzing and displaying information in order to help people make decisions when faces with uncertainty
statistics
what is statistics the science of?
the science of collecting, organizing, analyzing, and interpreting data
what does statistics help us with ?
It helps us make sense of numbers by finding patterns, trends, or relationships, and making decisions based on the data
in statistics, what do we do with the gained and analyzed useful information ?
we use it to help make a decision
what is a controlled experiment ?
is a test where you change one thing (called a variable) while keeping everything else the same
what do controlled experiments help us with ?
they help you see if the specific change causes any effect
give an example of how controlled experiments help us :
For example, if you’re testing a new plant fertilizer, you’d give it to one group of plants (the experimental group) and not to another group (the control group), while keeping everything else—like sunlight and water—the same for both groups. This way, you can tell if the fertilizer really makes a difference
why do we come up with a “control” ?
to really figure out the results and why they were occurring
TRUE OR FALSE ?
we want to control as many factors as possible
TRUE
what was case study 1.1 (monkey & human babies) ?
we observed that the majority % of rhesus monkey and humans mother’s hold their babies on their left side however, we could not determine an exact consensus as to why this was the case…
what did we do in the rhesus monkey and human mother case to try to figure out a consensus ?
we came up with a control experiment to really figure out the results and why they were occurring
what was Salk’s (the researcher) conjecture (opinion/conclusion) ?
“must be survival value to having a newborn places close to the pond of a mother’s heartbeat
what were the two control groups for case 1.1 ?
1st group of newborns = continuous sounds of human heartbeat over loudspeaker
2nd group of newborns = no sound played
what was the response to the two controlled experiment groups ?
response was weight gain (or loss) after 4 days
what was the final conclusion for the rhesus monkey & human mother experiment ?
infants treated to heartbeat sounds gained more weight (lost less) and cried less
TRUE OR FALSE
in detecting patterns and relationships some questions have less obvious answers than others
TRUE
TRUE OR FALSE
all questions require a study to decide its conclusion with a control experiment ?
FALSE
to conduct a statical study properly, what must one do ?
- get a representative sample
- get a large enough sample
- decide whether the study should be an observational study or a randomized experiment
what are the two things were looking for when getting a representative sample ?
sample & population
define “sample” :
those actually studied
define “population” :
larger group from which sample was chosen
what do we need to consider when looking for a sample group ?
we need to consider different factors such as gender, age, social status and more
TRUE OR FALSE
researchers want to extend results beyond just one sample ?
TRUE
between the sample and population, which is the “larger group from which sample was chosen” ?
population
between the sample and population, which are “those actually studied” ?
sample
what is a convenient sample ?
members of your family
how large is “large enough” of a sample size ?
depends on how much the responses vary (natural variability)
what is natural variability ?
refers to the normal differences or changes that happen in nature
what is an observational study ?
merely observe things about our sample (do not control the effect of other factors)
what is a randomized experiment ?
randomly assign participants to one of various treatment groups (define a cause-an-effect relationship)
in which kind of study/experiment of we NOT control the effect of other factors ?
observational study
in which kind of study/effect do we define a cause-and-effect relationship ?
randomized experiment
in which kind of study/experiment do we need a control ?
randomized experiment
what is a cause-and-effect relationship ?
A cause-and-effect relationship is when one thing (the cause) makes something else happen (the effect)
which of the following options DO NOT represent a representative sample for a survery on the average height of adult men in the U.S. ? Select all that apply.
a) randomly selecting 50 men from a national database of registered voters
b) choosing men who visit a specific gym in New York City
c) randomly selecting 100 men from various states across the U.S
d) selecting men based on voluntary responses to an online ad
e) surveying men who attend a professional basketball game
B C D
TRUE OR FALSE
you cant talk about correlation during observational studies ?
TRUE
you CANNOT
what is a placebo ?
anything that seems to be a “real” medical treatment – but isn’t
what is causation ?
the action of causing something
what is double blinding ?
when the experimentor and experimentees are both aware
is double blinding a good or bad thing ?
good thing, often preffered as it helps prevent bias
TRUE OR FALSE
diversity in experiments is NOT important
FALSE
diversity in reresentation is extremly important
TRUE OR FALSE
practical questions are usually very hard to get genuine responses for ?
TRUE
why are practical questions usually very hard to get genuine responses for ?
- people are affraid of other people opinions
- dont want to stand out
what is a factor that you MUST consider during the use of statistics ?
SIZE
why is considering size so important ?
- because it can strongly change, alter and affect the results
- for example when discussing “states” for example you cannot casually discuss the results from New York City as if its a fair compairison to a state such as Iowa (in regards to population, density, size, etc)
what do you need to conduct in order to display causation ?
randomized control trial
when we say something was “shown” / an observation is this an example of correlation or causation ?
correlation
TRUE OR FALSE
CORRELATION = CAUSATION
FALSE
correlation doesnt equal causation
can we make casual connections from observational studies ?
No we cannot make casual connections from observational studies
TRUE OR FALSE
there are both advantages and dangers of using statistical methods ?
TRUE
TRUE OR FALSE
results of a study are enough ?
FALSE results of a study are not enough
why are results alone from a study not enough ?
you need to know how data were collected, who was asking, how the experiment was conducted, etc.
