A big chunk of what I do involves looking at endless numbers of spreadsheets and charts. Spotting trends, digging into referral sources, and trying to make facts rise from figures like some sort of marketing phoenix. What’s amazing to me is that with nearly any set of numbers and data points, we can draw all kinds of conclusions.
It’s not enough to say “this clearly shows x,” because a good marketer can also make it show “y” and probably “z” as well. Stastistically 60% of people hate you, well cheer up — 40% love you! Now we compare that with the current presidential approval rating of 41% and you’re virtually as popular as our elected leader. How cool is that?
But every now and then, the statistics verge on the silly, or possibly the brilliant, it’s a fine line. A fella named Virgil Griffith out at Cal Tech compiled a chart comparing a college student body’s favorite music with the average SAT score admitted to the particular college.
The results range on a scale from Lil Wayne to Beethoven. If you ever wanted to (statistically!) justify being a musical snob, here’s your chance!
Big thanks to http://musicthatmakesyoudumb.virgil.gr/index.php for putting this together!
