Quotes About Analysis

There is nothing like the sheer power of numbers to scrub away layers of confusion and contradiction.

Particular gift is the ability to ask such questions. For instance: If drug dealers make so much money, why do they still live with their mothers? Which is more dangerous, a gun or a swimming pool? What really caused crime rates to plunge during the past decade? Do real-estate agents have their clients' best interests at heart? Why do black parents give their children names that may hurt their career prospects? Do schoolteachers cheat to meet high-stakes testing.

emotion is the enemy of rational argument.

Overall, a portfolio of the "good to great" companies looks like it would have underperformed the S&P 500.

Here is the broader point: whatever problem you're trying to solve, make sure you're not just attacking the noisy part of the problem that happens to capture your attention. Before spending all your time and resources, it's incredibly important to properly define the problem—or, better yet, redefine the problem.

contar historias que se basan en datos acumulados y no en anécdotas personales, anomalías llamativas, opiniones personales, estallidos emocionales o tendencias morales.

How can this type of data be made to tell a reliable story? By subjecting it to the economist's favorite trick: regression analysis. No, regression analysis is not some forgotten form of psychiatric treatment. It is a powerful—if limited—tool that uses statistical techniques to identify otherwise elusive correlations.

A good set of data can go a long way toward describing human behavior as long as the proper questions are asked of it. Our job in this book is to come up with such questions.

But when it comes to solving problems, one of the best ways to start is by putting away your moral compass. Why? When you are consumed with the rightness or wrongness of a given issue—whether it's fracking or gun control or genetically engineered food—it's easy to lose track of what the issue actually is.

rely on accumulated data rather than on individual anecdotes

After recent events, one might wonder if the macroeconomy is the domain of any economist.

Economics] is all about observing the world with genuine curiosity and admitting that it is full of mysteries

Freakonomics is out to dazzle you with facts; The Armchair Economist is out to dazzle you with logic.

Logic matters. It leads us from simple ideas to surprising conclusions.

Storytellers need their stories to resonate with their listeners. So when you envision a goal and describe the action needed to reach that goal, you transform your vision into a portrayal that depicts what's truly possible to move people to action. While you need enough material (data and reasoned analysis) to flesh out the tale, you don't want to bombard people with charts and tables.

He drew maps in his head, looking for patterns, looking for clues.

regulatory impact analysis

Correct predictions result in understanding. Incorrect predictions result in confusion and prompt you to pay attention.

We both approach the world as economists, and as economists resigned to - and sometimes even reveling in - the character defect that diverts us from pure science to policy analysis. An economist who has abandoned his resistance to policy analysis is liable to fall prey to even more seductive and dangerous vice of policy formulation.

la economía es una ciencia que cuenta con herramientas excelentes para la obtención de respuestas, pero que sufre una seria escasez de preguntas interesantes.

Much can be gained be contrasting a theory with its alternatives, even ones that look too extreme to be true. You can really understand something when you know what it is not.

I think about how language works so I can best explain how language works.

smarter people tend to think more like economists

Social scientists should never try to predict the future; they have enough trouble predicting the past.")