“The Median Isn’t the Message” Article by Gould

Read the article “The Median Isn’t the Message” by Stephen Jay Gould. What are your immediate thoughts on this article?

If the median isn’t the message, then what is Gould’s message? What is the main statistical concept addressed in this article? What are Gould’s personal feelings about statistics, as put forth in this article, and how does an understanding of statistics lead Gould to better understand his own diagnosis? Why isn’t it enough to just know the measure of central tendency when trying to understand a distribution? Why does understanding measures of variability matter as well? Can you think of other examples in which statistical literacy can impact one’s own personal experiences?