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Context is indeed all ... Julian > -----Original Message----- > From: email list for Radical Statistics > [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ted Harding > Sent: 17 June 2010 10:44 > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Re: [RADSTATS] How to lie with statistics [was: The state of > the > > On 17-Jun-10 09:02:23, Wells, Julian wrote: > > I certainly would deny their right to choose to describe a one per > cent > > increase in something as "rocketing", or a 100 per cent increase as > > "slight". > > It depends on context ... An anti-aircraft missile is located 6370km > from the centre of the Earth. It is launched at an aircraft flying > at 7000m (= 7km). So it "rockets" from 6370 to 6370 + 0.11% ... > > Ted. > > > Whether I would want to *prevent* such abuses, given the opportunity, > > is another question: if I was refereeing a submission to a scholarly > > journal I'd certainly have something pointed to say in my report, at > > the very least. > > > > Julian > > This email has been scanned for all viruses by the MessageLabs Email Security System. ****************************************************** Please note that if you press the 'Reply' button your message will go only to the sender of this message. If you want to reply to the whole list, use your mailer's 'Reply-to-All' button to send your message automatically to [log in to unmask] Disclaimer: The messages sent to this list are the views of the sender and cannot be assumed to be representative of the range of views held by subscribers to the Radical Statistics Group. To find out more about Radical Statistics and its aims and activities and read current and past issues of our newsletter you are invited to visit our web site www.radstats.org.uk. *******************************************************