Case-based Social Statistics CSSS/STAT/SOC 322

Links to resources

Using course resources

• How to use the message board: UW information on Epost
• HyperStat: an online statistics reference that provides multiple perspectives and styles.
• CyberStats: an online and interactive statistics course. Password access only.

Interesting Links (with thanks to Bob Heckard, Penn State University)

In the Current News: Surveys, Observational Studies, and Randomized Experiments

• Gallup Polls: The Gallup Organization’s site. Frequent updating with current polls and good archive of polls conducted in last few years.
• PollingReport.com   A collection of recent poll results on business, politics and society from many different sources.

• National Council on Public Polls Excellent article entitled "20 Questions a Journalist Should Ask About Poll Results
• National Opinion Research Center A research center that conducts many scientific polls.

• USA Today Internet Polls about Health   USA Today Health Index.  An archive of past health stories reported in the USA Today newspaper.

• CNN Polling Details : A Frequently Asked Questions page explaining how CNN polls are usually conducted.

• http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/polls/datadir.htm   A set of links to all of the major polls (USA Today, CNN, NY Times, ABC, Gallup Poll , ...). Maintained by The Washington Post.

Survey Methodology

• http://www.publicagenda.org  Nice discussions of issues connected to surveys on “hot” public issues (abortion, crime, etc.). In particular, click on “Red Flags” for each issue to see examples of how question wording, survey timing, and so on affect survey results.
• http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/009poll/index.html  University of Wisconsin Why Files on Polling. Discusses basic polling principles.
• http://www.ncpp.org/qajsa.htm , and also at http://www.publicagenda.org/aboutpubopinion/aboutpubop1.htm  “20 Questions A Journalist Should Ask About A Poll.” Informative article from the National Council on Public Polls.

General Resource Sites

• Chance News : A newsletter of miscellaneous media items useful for class discussion.
• Archive of Mathematical Mistakes : Collection of examples of ways people misinterpret numbers. Many of the examples are statistical.
• The Junk Science Home Page : The name of the site says it all. The author of this site show no mercy in his criticisms of topical research studies.
• The Skeptics Society: A society committed to empirical and scientific approaches. Opinionated and insightful.
• How Numbers Are Tricking You   Examples of misleading statistics.

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