“How to Lie With Statistics” by Darrell Huff
Every day, statistics are used to tell stories about what’s happening in the world and in your business. There’s only one problem: most of them are designed to mislead you.
How to Lie with Statistics is a truly timeless book: originally written in 1954, this book shows you how easy it to be mislead through statistical manipulation, giving you the knowledge necessary to intelligently question and understand the story behind the numbers.
Using stories and examples, Darrel Huff shows you how easy it is to be mislead by poorly crafted statistics, covering sample bias, improper use of averages, statistical significance, probable error, chart scale, distorted graphical proportion, lack of proper context, biased polling questions, correlation vs. causation, and unwarranted precision.
The examples are entertainingly old-fashioned, but the principles taught in How to Lie with Statistics are just as important today as they were 50 years ago.
Like this post? Join over 23,000 readers and subscribe to the Personal MBA newsletter now. You'll receive business book summaries and practical training - absolutely free!
TweetRecent Posts on PersonalMBA.com
- Personal MBA Survey - Do You Have a Minute?
- 2012 Personal MBA Reading List Update
- Real Artists Ship
- Uncertainty - Jonathan Fields
- End Malaria - Creating a Personal Masterplan
- What Must an Educated Person Know?
- New York Times - 7 Tools to Manage Social Media Overload
- Permanent Portfolio Investing Strategy
- Fail Safe Investing - Harry Browne
- Read This Before Our Next Meeting - Al Pittampalli
