Statistics How To

Statistics Definitions > What are Equally Likely Outcomes? Equally likely outcomes are, like the name suggests, events with an equal chance of happening. Many events have equally likely outcomes, like tossing a coin (50% probability of heads; 50% probability of tails) or a die (1/6 probability of getting any number on the die). In real … Read more

Probability in Real Life > How To Calculate Odds of Winning Difference Between Probability and Odds Probability and odds are very closely related; the terms are often used interchangeably, but there is an important difference. Probability: divide chances of winning by the total number of chances available . For example, if you buy one ticket … Read more

Probability in Real Life > Odds of Winning Sweepstakes What is a Sweepstakes? Sweepstakes, lotteries, and contests might seem the same, but legally they are quite different. This is important, because to calculate odds of winning sweepstakes, or improve your odds of winning, you first must understand what they are. A sweepstakes is a random … Read more

Probability in Real Life > Odds of Winning Publisher’s Clearing House Publisher’s Clearing House (PCH) has awarded more than $315 million in prizes since 1967, when the famed sweepstakes began [1]. PCH uses the sweepstakes to promote magazine subscriptions and other merchandise like jewelry and time-share vacations. This nets the company one billion dollars a … Read more

Probability in Real Life > Mega Millions Odds What is Mega Millions? Mega Millions is a lottery game where you choose six numbers from two pools of numbers: Five numbers between 1 and 70 (“white balls”) One number from 1 to 25 (“gold Mega ball”) In January 2021, the jackpot reached one billion dollars. What … Read more

SPSS Tutorial (for Beginners): Intro to SPSS > The runs test ((also called the Wald-Wolfowitz one-sample runs test) will tell you if the order of a binary variable is random or not. A “run” is a sequence of observations that change in a similar direction. For example, you might have a sequence of days when … Read more

Probability in Real Life There’s a slew of tips and tricks on the internet about how to improve your odds of winning the lottery. These include: Play every week. Buy more tickets for a game. Pick higher numbers. Use “lucky” numbers like your children’s birthdays. Play the same numbers every time. But which tips and … Read more

Statistics Definitions > In statistics, the term “score interval” has two completely different meanings. It can refer to either: Score intervals on frequency distributions, or The Wilson technique to calculate confidence intervals. Definition 1: Score Intervals on Frequency Distributions A score interval is a range of possible scores on a frequency distribution or histogram [1]. … Read more

Statistics Definitions > Coverage probability is the probability a procedure for the construction of a region will give an interval that covers (contains) the true population parameter. In other words, it is the chance a constructed interval contains the parameter you’re interested in [1]. The Ideal Coverage Probability Coverage probability is a way to evaluate … Read more

Confidence Intervals > Wald CI The Wald CI, also called the Wald interval or Classical Large-Sample Interval, is a common method to find binomial confidence intervals. It is named after Romanian mathematician Abraham Wald. Wald CI Formula The formula is [1]: Where: n = sample size, p-hat = sample proportion, z(1+L)/2 = (1+L)/2 standard normal … Read more