March 18, 2022 - 13:41
Below, I will attach my midterm project, a comic about eugenics and statistics. If you would like to listening to an audio recoding of the comic, click on this link
Please let me know if there are any issues with the link.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
 Eugenics and Statistics Comic FINAL VERSION.pdf | 10.47 MB |
Comments
I love your project!
Submitted by Nikki on March 20, 2022 - 15:37 Permalink
JT your project is so informative and really expresses what we were discussing in class! Eugenecism in science is prevalent and professors do not do enough to explain how science has been used to justify racism/sexism/ableism and the problems with those thought processes. Your comic sums the problem up really clearly and in an engaging way! I think maybe it would be awesome to get this to the math department and explain how the stats class should include this information somewhere in its curriculum. Even if they do not include it in the curriculum, I think this document is important to have students at least read since statistics is an important part of almost every social science/stem career.
Something just as important that I love that you included that with this education we also need to talk about ways to prevent statistical data from being misused. Understanding the context is not enough to enact change and the comic also spends time to suggest methods so that statistical data can be less biased and what to look out for when looking at data sets to question what the author is trying to get across.
Campaign to hang the comic all over the kinsc is a go! lol. Thank you for sharing your comic!
LOVED IT
Submitted by Piper on March 26, 2022 - 14:50 Permalink
I second Nikki! Please can this get printed and put all over campus!!!!! People need to know this history and your format makes it so easy to consume a really tough topic. Also very much appreciated your authors note, a great way to preface how vital and important it is, and certainly something I am sure people can relate to because also a history I was unaware of!!!
Awesome (and super comprehensive)!
Submitted by Caroline on March 30, 2022 - 00:33 Permalink
JT, this is so cool! I definitely agree that statisticians should learn this history, just like other scholars and practitioners have a responsibility to understand the ethics of their fields. This comic is a great introduction to all of that.
Beyond the value of the subject matter, I especially appreciate the overall balance of the work. Your presentation of historical figures, their contributions to statistics, and their eugenicist beliefs (or unwilling contributions to eugenics) is well-organized. While it requires some statistical knowledge to fully appreciate the implications of These People developing These Tools of Analysis, I think that even someone who hasn't studied the jargon could get a lot out of it. You achieve this in part by paying lots of attention to the real-world applications of statistics later in the comic, especially how statistics create expectations that now carry ableist value judgments. Your project is not just a history or a report on current problems or an advice pamphlet; instead, it traces through all of those things with comfortable efficiency.
I also really admire how you modulate tone throughout the comic. It is appropriately serious around topics that need that respect, but it is also casual and even funny in ways that welcome the reader. For a little trapezoid of brain matter with eyes, Spot is an impressively engaging protagonist!
Thank you for this wonderful summary of statistical history!