Abstract:
Professor Ziliak's areas of
expertise include the study of welfare and poverty; economic history, rhetoric,
and philosophy; and history and philosophy of science and statistics.
He co-authored (with Prof.
Deirdre N. McCloskey, University of Illinois-Chicago) The Cult of Statistical
Significance: How the Standard Error Costs Us Jobs, Justice, and Lives. University of Michigan Press, 2008.
Dr. Ziliak’s work has been featured
in Science, Nature, The Economist, Poetry, Wall Street Journal, BBC, NPR,
Chronicle of Higher Education, Financial Times, New York Times, and the Supreme
Court of the United States. (This biographic info and a more complete CV are
available at http://sites.roosevelt.edu/sziliak/)
Steve will discuss his experiences
preparing a brief of amici
curiae for a case
heard by the United States Supreme Court this January and walk us through some
of the arguments presented in his thought-provoking and entertaining article
"Matrixx v. Siracusano and Student v. Fisher" in the September 2011
issue of Significance:
Statistics Making Sense.
This article begins with a quote from the US Supreme Court ruling
"Matrixx's argument rests on the premise that statistical significance is
the only reliable indication of causation. This premise is flawed.” and goes on
from there!
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12/9 Update:
Everyone,
Thanks for the great attendance and thanks to Steve for a phenomenal presentation. Please find pictures of the event below.
