Senators vote in favour of plan to scrap Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
Puerto Rico's senators have approved a plan to dismantle the island's independent Institute of Statistics (PRIS). The plan will see the institute become part of the government's Department of Economic Development, which would then outsource statistical work to the private sector.
By Brian Tarran
Senators vote in favour of plan to scrap Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
Puerto Rico's senators have approved a plan to dismantle the island's independent Institute of Statistics (PRIS). The plan will see the institute become part of the government's Department of Economic Development, which would then outsource statistical work to the private sector.
By Brian Tarran
Facebook data harvesting: what you need to know
Facebook makes most of its money from advertising, and – as the Cambridge Analytica scandalcontinues to haunt Mark Zuckerberg’s company – users are demanding to know how their data...
By Gráinne Maedhbh Nic Lochlainn
Enter our writing competition for early-career statisticians
Are you an early-career statistician with the ability to write data-driven stories in an entertaining and thought-provoking way? If so, we invite you to enter the 2018 Statistical Excellence Award...
By Brian Tarran
Facebook data harvesting: what you need to know
Facebook makes most of its money from advertising, and – as the Cambridge Analytica scandal continues to haunt Mark Zuckerberg’s company – users are demanding to know how their data is being wrangled and harvested. But while concern about Facebook user privacy has spiked, it’s been clear since Facebook’s inception that its business is based on widespread surveillance of people, whose data is the product.
By Gráinne Maedhbh Nic Lochlainn
Enter our writing competition for early-career statisticians
Are you an early-career statistician with the ability to write data-driven stories in an entertaining and thought-provoking way? If so, we invite you to enter the 2018 Statistical Excellence Award for Early-Career Writing. The competition is jointly organised by Significance and the Young Statisticians Section of the Royal Statistical Society (RSS) and forms part of the RSS Statistical Excellence Awards programme.
By Brian Tarran
Betting on a royal birth: how many babies will be born the same day?
On 4 September 2017, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – better known as “William and Kate” – announced they were expecting their third child. Bookmakers immediately began taking bets. At the time of writing, most were offering 10/11 on a boy and 10/11 on a girl (i.e., those who bet £11 would win £10). They were also taking bets on the choice of name: Mary was the bookies’ favourite for a girl, with odds of 3/1, while Arthur was the favourite for a boy, at 9/1.
By Shomoita Alam and James Hanley
Betting on a royal birth: how many babies will be born the same day?
By Shomoita Alam and James Hanley
