Sometimes you hear about studies that seem pretty crazy. Like the one that determined (based on facial expressions monitored through ultrasound) that fetuses enjoy music played through a device in the vagina over music played through the belly. While that one was tied to (shocker!) a patented device to help parents connect through music, many …
A randomized controlled trial published in the reputable medical journal BMJ in December 2018 proved that whether or not you use a parachute when you jump out of a plane or helicopter made no difference in the rate of death or serious injury. Sound weird? It’s true! It’s a real study! It was called the …
Sometimes charts and graphs are designed in a way that is very misleading. Here are some examples, and explanations for what makes them misleading. Directional Disorientation This is a pretty famous bad graph that I have edited to remove the actual subject matter and protect the innocent. If you take a look at it, you …
5 Kinds of Bad Data Visualization and how it can lead you wrong Read More »
An interesting look at the wide variations in what hospitals charge for births. The range is much wider than you might realize, and cannot be explained by socioeconomics, demographics, or risk levels. My state, Utah, has raw data on hospital charges available to consumers. They’re not adjusted for any factors at all, but can still …
Launch Monitors and Evidence Based Medicine Interesting food for thought on our personal biases, from Academic OB/GYN.