data

The Hard Science Behind A Hit Screenplay

Virginia Prescott — Tue, 07 May 2013 14:33:15 +0000

Nate Silver opened the public’s eyes to the power of predictive statistics… now, having already conquered politics, marketing, and social media, data-crunchers are taking on their next big challenge: Hollywood. Brooks Barnes is a media reporter for the New York Times – he recently wrote about Vinny Bruzzese, a statistician and former professor who’s using big data to slice and dice Hollywood screenplays

Getting Smarter About Statistics

Virginia Prescott — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 15:54:55 +0000

Math has had a good run. Its virtues were extolled during the presidential debates and in endless news stories calculated fiscal scenarios. New York Times blogger Nate Silver was pilloried by math, then vindicated. Still, mathematics and the data-driven statistics that guide decisions from Wall Street to the dugout to your insurance rates are woefully misunderstood.

Emergence of the Modern Infographic

Virginia Prescott — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 21:06:47 +0000

From apps for avoiding heavy traffic to the latest polling data in the presidential race -- infographics are visual shorthand for data in the post-newspaper slash social media slash sound byte age. Several sources credit the digital age for giving birth to infographics and others cite the publication of USA Today’s “Snapshots” beginning in 1982. Susan Schulten begs to differ.

Something To Look At: Raw Data Transformed

Virginia Prescott — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 20:39:11 +0000

Last week, WNYC's John Keefe visited NHPR. He heads that station’s new Datanews group, and demonstrated some truly illuminating interactive data maps for us. One map of New York reveals that the blocks where the highest number of stop and frisk gun searches are conducted by the NYPD, are not the places where stopping and frisking actually results in seizing a gun. So, using graphics to illustrate raw data can add value to news stories, or become the story itself.

Unemployment Numbers for May Hold Steady

Todd Bookman — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 15:38:20 +0000

Twenty-three hundred jobs were added to New Hampshire payrolls between April and May, but the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remains stuck at 5%.

There was good news for Coos County: the North Country’s rate dipped below 8% for the first time this year.

Grafton County has the State’s lowest unemployment at 4.1%.

All in all, the data met expectations, says Bob Cote, a researcher with NH Employment Security.

Here's What's Awesome

Brady Carlson — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 14:47:23 +0000

Awesomator Brady Carlson shares this week's rundown of online awesomeness.

On Fouls and Free Throws: New Basketball Research Hits the Court

Virginia Prescott — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:50:40 +0000

A wave of new basketball data digs into why players 'choke' under pressure, how they perform in front of new fans, and whether or not the 'urban phenom' is a myth.