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When Data-Driven Decisions Produce Bad Outcomes

Our weekly selection of must-read Editors' Picks and original features

Photo by Martin Lostak on Unsplash
Photo by Martin Lostak on Unsplash

At its core, data science is a discipline whose purpose is to help people—business owners, doctors, educators, public servants—make good real-world decisions. The assumption is that outcomes improve as our actions become more strongly informed by data. But is that always true? Can data lead us astray?

Vishesh Khemani explores this question in depth in his recent post on reaching the best possible decisions. Taking the example of his daughter’s new smartphone (and whether or not buying insurance for it makes sense), he explains the math behind our daily decision-making processes. It’s a great introduction to applied statistics and a handy guide for making rational decisions.

Our other highlights this week cover even more facets of decision-making. They range from choosing a specific algorithm for a given task to evaluating the performance of soccer players. Let’s dive in.

Thanks, as always, for reading, sharing, and supporting our authors’ work.

Until the next Variable, TDS Editors


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