XPost: rec.arts.tv, alt.tv.scifi.channel   
   From: your.name@isp.com   
      
   "cloud dreamer"  wrote in message   
   news:W76dnTFBGrMuL33RnZ2dnUVZ_hOdnZ2d@supernews.com...   
   > On 15/11/2010 12:39 AM, Your Name wrote:   
   >   
   > >   
   > > Their samples are small when compared to the total possible viewers.   
   > > Surveying 100 or even 1000 out of millions of people is ridiculous. It's   
   > > also ridiculous  that they pick and choose those few people they do   
   > > survey.   
   >   
   >   
   > You obviously don't understand anything about statistics. A sample size   
   > of only a few thousand can reliably predict the mood of millions. Gallop   
   > does it every day within a couple percentage points, 19 times out of 20.   
   >   
   >   
   > > Even more ridiculous is that so many people blindly believe their   
   > > guessimates as some sort of real fact.   
   >   
   >   
   > Just because you don't understand the process doesn't mean its flawed.   
      
   Believe me, I've done Statistics right through to University level (and   
   passed). I do know all the methods and flaws, as well as the flaws in the   
   way results are reported.   
      
   Flip a coin 10 times, and lets say you get the true results of 7 heads and 3   
   tails.   
      
   Now according to Neilsen (and other stupid survey / polls companies), that   
   means that if you flip the coin 1000 times you will definitely get 700 heads   
   and 300 tails ... which is complete and utter nonsense, and little better   
   than simply guessing.   
      
   Then of course many of those companies try to hid their lies behind   
   statsically manpipulated percentages by saying "70% of coins are heads" ...   
   again, complete and utter nonsense. In reality, they mean "70% of the 10   
   coins we bothered to test were heads", but by falsely and inaccurately   
   stating their results in a misleading way they can confuse the naive public.   
      
   Neilsen and many other companies compound their stupidity by hand-picking   
   who they do and don't ask.   
      
   In many cases such stupid and inaccurate surveys are nothing but meaningless   
   and useles drivel ... but in some case idiots base their decisions on these   
   misleading numbers, and in the case of "medical studies" it can be down   
   right dangerous when reported by morons in the "don't let facts get in the   
   way of a being first with a story" journalists.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)