Calling Bull

Catalog description

This course will provide students with basic data science skills to understand and critically reflect on the presentation and interpretation of data in our everyday lives. Students will develop quantitative reasoning skills to distinguish between mathematically sound interpretations of data and misrepresentations of data, known as bull. Students will also develop an understanding of why and how bull spreads, the consequences of dissemination, and the ethical implications or refuting or not refuting bull. Specific topics include logical fallacies, Fermi estimation, introduction to descriptive and inferential statistics, interpretation of graphs, charts, and other forms of data, and publication bias. Students will use statistical software to develop valid visualizations of data and refute misrepresentations. By the end of the course, students will have the basic skills needed to identify bull and provide both a technical and non-technical argument to refute bull.