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Subject:Re: girls and comput... From:Bonni Graham <bonnig -at- AOL -dot- COM> Date:Sat, 16 Apr 1994 13:49:32 EDT
Karen replies to Steve Owens:
"You just decided these
numbers, and then are trying to use these made-up numbers to
support your thesis that math weenies are more likely to use
computers because that's what your made-up numbers indicate."
No, actually, he wasn't. He used those numbers to show that the number of
math "weenies" using computers going up had no effect at all on the number of
humanities "weenies" going up or down.
The numbers he posted and was discussing were not a total percentage of all
computer users. Rather they were separate figures showing the percentage of
users w/in that field -- these figures therefors have no comparative effect
on each other. Going back to the example:
20% *of math majors* use computers (vs 80% who do not)
10% *of humanities majors* use computers (vs 90% who do not)
If I change the 20% to 30%, does that have any effect at all on the
percentage of humanities majors using computers? No -- it stays at ten
percent. If you look at it as a pie chart, we're talking about two different
pies. If I have a piece of coconut creme pie, it doesn't mean that there's
less peach pie to have.
As a side issue, to illustrate the point he was making, he HAD to use made up
numbers -- I don't have the real figures off the top of my head. I don't
think anyone does. He wasn't using these figures to support the theory of
math majors using computers more than humanities majors do (even though that
was the original contention -- and I still say "define 'use'"). He was, if I
remember correctly, trying to show how more math majors using computers (as
compared to those math majors NOT using computers) did not mean that fewer
humanities majors did.
I wasn't going to jump in, but I hate to see the issue confused because
statistics were misinterpreted.
Bonni Graham
Manual Labour
President, SDSTC
BonniG -at- aol -dot- com (619) 283-5261
