August 1, 2015

1 min read

Google Logo Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm

Book Review: Spurious Correlations

Recommendations from Scientific American

By Clara Moskowitz

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

Spurious Correlations
by Tyler Vigen
Hachette Books, 2015 (($20))

“Correlation does not equal causation” is an oft-repeated, yet oft-forgotten, maxim. When two quantities happen to vary together, people are apt to think one depends on the other, whether or not they do. Vigen, a Harvard Law School student, illustrates that point in this hilarious and illuminating collection of completely coincidental correlations—such as the number of films Jennifer Lawrence appears in yearly and the gross domestic product of Australia (97.8 percent correlation) and the annual rate of shark attacks compared with that of tornadoes (77.4 percent). Beyond the humor, Vigen makes a serious point: spurious connections are becoming easier to find thanks to the increasing availability of large data sets and the tools to mine them. As science becomes more and more intertwined with “big data,” researchers must fight the urge to ascribe meaning to every association they discover.

Clara Moskowitz is chief of reporters at Scientific American, where she covers astronomy, space, physics and mathematics. She has been at Scientific American for more than a decade; previously she worked at Space.com. Moskowitz has reported live from rocket launches, space shuttle liftoffs and landings, suborbital spaceflight training, mountaintop observatories, and more. She has a bachelor’s degree in astronomy and physics from Wesleyan University and a graduate degree in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

More by Clara Moskowitz
Scientific American Magazine Vol 313 Issue 2This article was published with the title “Book Review: Spurious Correlations” in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 313 No. 2 (), p. 82
doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0815-82a
View This Issue

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.

Thank you,

David M. Ewalt, Editor in Chief, Scientific American

Subscribe