How Stats Fool Juries
Oxford mathematician Peter Donnelly explores the common mistakes we make in interpreting statistics, and the devastating impact these errors can have on the outcome of criminal trials. Statistical uncertainty and randomness, he says, confound many of our assumptions about the world. He shares the case of a British woman wrongly convicted of murdering her two infants — a verdict reached, in part, by the misuse of statistics.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2352957888220315795
About Peter Donnelly:
Peter Donnelly applies statistical methods to real-world problems, ranging from DNA analysis (for criminal trials), to the treatment of genetic disorders. A mathematician who collaborates with biologists, he specializes in applying probability and statistics to the field of genetics, in hopes of shedding light on evolutionary history and the structure of the human genome
The Australian-born, Oxford-based mathematician is best known for his work in molecular evolution (tracing the roots of human existence to their earliest origins using the mutation rates of mitochondrial DNA). He studies genetic distributions in living populations to trace human evolutionary history — an approach that informs research in evolutionary biology, as well as medical treatment for genetic disorders. Donnelly is a key player in the International HapMap Project, an ongoing international effort to model human genetic variation and pinpoint the genes responsible for specific aspects of health and disease; its implications for disease prevention and treatment are vast.
He’s also a leading expert on DNA analysis and the use of forensic science in criminal trials; he’s an outspoken advocate for bringing sensible statistical analysis into the courtroom. Donnelly leads Oxford University’s Mathematical Genetics Group, which conducts research in genetic modeling, human evolutionary history, and forensic DNA profiling.
Tags: Business, Criminal Trials, Evolutionary Biology, Forensic Dna Profiling, Human Evolutionary History, Human Existence, Human Genetic Variation, International Hapmap Project, Mathematical, Mathematical Genetics Group, Misuse Of Statistics, Outspoken Advocate, Oxford University, Peter Donnelly, probability, Probability And Statistics, Statistical, Statistical Uncertainty, uncertaintyRelated posts
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
