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Web Exercises

1. Go to How to Use Data to Make a Hit TV Show

Does collecting more data lead to better decision-making? Competitive, data-savvy companies like Amazon, Google and Netflix have learned that data analysis alone doesn't always produce optimum results. In this Ted Talk, data scientist Sebastian Wernicke breaks down what goes wrong when we make decisions based purely on data — and suggests a brainier way to use it.

• Describe the purpose of the study described
• What type of research design is used?
• What variables might the researchers be investigating to answer their research questions?
• How could the study be a factorial experimental design?

2. 1. Go to Understanding Interactions

• Read the description of interaction effects
• View the line graphs depicting main and interaction effects
• Interpret the eight line graphs
• After viewing the data in line graphs, click on “view as bar graph” for each of the graphs
• Is it easier or more difficult to interpret the main and interaction effects? Why?
• Would you recommend using line or bar graphs?

3. Go to The Doctor Trying to Solve the Mystery of Food Allergies

This NPR clip interviews Dr. Kari Nadeau, one of the scientists at the forefront of food allergy research. She describes possible reasons why food allergies are on the rise.

• What are the different factors possibly contributing to food allergies?
• In the interview, it is mentioned that the causes of food allergies are “probably multi-factorial.” What does this mean?
• If you were to design a study extending this research, what type of factorial design would you conduct?
• What main effects and interaction effects would you investigate?