The Royal Statistical Society (RSS) is the UK’s main organised body of statisticians. Its aim is to promote the importance of statistics and data, and it does so by publishing research journals, holding regular meetings, funding conferences and through many other activities. It was founded in 1834 and currently has more than 9,000 members worldwide. The RSS has close ties to universities, research institutes, government statistical offices, industrial organisations and other agencies whose role involves the use or development of statistics. A list of past presidents of the RSS reads like a who’s who of the most famous British statisticians from the last 200 years.
Obviously an organisation with a prestige like that wouldn’t fall into the trap of trivialising statistics with a competition for ‘Statistic of the year’, right?
Wrong! Welcome to the Royal Statistical Society’s Statistic of the Year. In fact there are two statistics of the year: the ‘National Statistic of the Year’ and the ‘International Statistic of the Year’. In the words of the RSS, this competition is…
… a new initiative that celebrates how statistics can help us better understand the world around us
Personally, I’m not convinced that designating an individual number as statistic of the year, in the same way that you might designate Harry Kane Lionel Messi as player of the year, does much to celebrate or promote the importance of Statistics, but perhaps this just conveys my lack of intelligence or humour.
Anyway, I thought you might like to know what 2017’s International Statistic of the Year was:
Just click the above link to find the winner. I’m not joking and I’ll give the reason for that choice in a subsequent post.
Meantime, please take the opportunity to make a nomination for the 2018 Statistic of the Year. I’ll keep you posted once the results are out.
Update:
Nomination from Leo is 0, the number of current under-30 year-old tennis players who have ever won a male grand slam. (Del Potro has just turned 30).
