this post was submitted on 18 Jun 2025
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xkcd #3104: Tukey (imgs.xkcd.com)
submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by xkcdbot@lemmy.world to c/xkcd@lemmy.world
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xkcd #3104: Tukey

Title text:

Numbers can be tricky. On the day of my 110th birthday, I'll be one day younger than John Tukey was on his.

Transcript:

[Text formatted as a block quote]

"Far better an approximate answer to the right question, which is often vague, than an exact answer to the wrong question, which can always be made precise."

John W. Tukey
The Future of Data Analysis (1962)

Caption below the comic:
Happy approximate birthday to John Tukey, author of my favorite statistics quote, who was born 110.000 years ago sometime this week.

Source: https://xkcd.com/3104/

explainxkcd for #3104

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[–] Deebster@infosec.pub 54 points 1 month ago (3 children)

This reminds me of Charles Babbage's response to being asked if his computer would give the right answer if the wrong numbers were entered:

I am not able rightly to apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question.

I've been tempted to drop this line in meetings more than once.

[–] otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Right in line with a certain movie quote that ends with, "I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul."

[–] skulblaka@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 month ago

Oh I keep this one memorized.

[Mr. Madison,] What you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

I've successfully used this twice in DnD and once in real life.

[–] Cocodapuf@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Is this a coherent thought? (Actual question)

[–] Feathercrown@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Are you confused about the older language in the quote? It could be rewritten as:

I cannot even comprehend the kind of misunderstanding that could cause you to ask that question.