Talk:2696: Precision vs Accuracy

87.532% of all statistics are just made up. 172.70.178.220 11:10, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

Why is 'Barack Obama is 6'1"' and 'Barack Obama has 4 legs' medium precision? It seems to give exact value, so high precision. Tkopec (talk) 11:44, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

OK, I get it. 6'1" means something between 6'0.50" and 6'1.49". For height it's OK, but when counting legs, it seems like a stretch. Tkopec (talk) 12:30, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

The four legs are probably considered to be only medium precise, not because of the number but because of the imprecise term "leg". While humans can walk on all four extremities, thereby using them as legs, the upper two are commonly referred to as arms. Bischoff (talk) 14:54, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

(ECed by Bischoff) Plus a person's height (excluding differences to footwear and perhaps hairstyle) varies by an inch or so over the course of a day, as the spine compresses whilst mostly upright (would depend a bit upon your daily activities, but "an inch" or 2-3cm is the typical quoted value, with all the questions about precision as well as accuracy). Within an inch of such a foot-and-inch value is basically between slightly over a percentage point of drift across a continuum of ultimately non-integer values.

The number of legs is generally a whole number (perhaps lower-limb amputees could claim "half a leg", but is that for above the knee or below or... that's beyond my wish to define, I would leave it up to the individual amputee to finesse to their own liking) and assigning decimals, even .000(recurring), would be over-precise. A definite plain figure (however inaccurate) being the happy and acceptable medium between that and the vague imprecision (never mind inaccuracy) of the kind in the cell below. 172.71.178.137 15:00, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

Someone should add an explanation of the difference between precision and accuracy. Nutster (talk) 13:13, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

Tried it myself. Maybe made it too compact, but I often go on too long so I tried made it as brief and snappy as I felt I could. Over to other editors to rewrite or replace. 172.71.178.137 15:00, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

That there is confusion over this was a bit of a surprise to me, about 20 years ago, when I worked (as I did for many years) in the outdoor pursuits trade. GPS units would give a 12-character grid reference (1m²), but couldn't be relied upon to that level. I would tell people they're more precise than they are accurate, until it became apparent that they were waiting for me to complete the joke they thought I'd begun, as I was so clearly contradicting myself, what with the two words meaning identical things.

Having gone on to explain the difference between the words, the neat brevity I'd sought was lost.

Obviously they can be used sort of interchangeably in casual conversation, but I thought the difference was well enough known that, when talking about a navigational instrument, it would be obvious what was meant.

Nope.

Yorkshire Pudding (talk) 20:18, 9 November 2022 (UTC) How is 17.082 palindromic? Barmar (talk) 14:54, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

My error, I meant an anagram! (Was going for "anagramic", and my brain clearly rebelled.) 172.71.178.137 15:00, 9 November 2022 (UTC)

High Precision High accuracy, Randal Munroe misses when Obama was president. Low precision Medium-rare accuracy, so do we, Randal, so do we.