Junk Statistics
Published at 19:47 on 10 December 2018
The article alarmingly titled Study: Only two-thirds of Millennials fully believe the Earth is round is junk news. Why? Just look at the question and the choices for answers offered:
Do you believe that the world is round or flat?
- I have always believed the world is round
- I always thought the world is round, but more recently I am skeptical/have doubts
- I always thought the world is flat, but more recently I am skeptical/have doubts
- I have always believed the world is flat
- Other/Not sure
How would someone who has a good childhood memory (such as yours truly) answer this question? “Other/not sure” in my case: when I was a young child, I believed the Earth to be flat, because to such a child it obviously does appear to be so. Later on, I learned otherwise, then learned the mountains of evidence that indicate so.
It’s the only accurate answer available. I have not always believed the world to be round, I have certainly not become skeptical the earth is round recently, I have not recently become skeptical the world is flat, and I have certainly not always believed the world is flat. It’s an elementary process of elimination (as arriving at any “other” category must be). I doubt I’m the only one who arrived at “other/not sure” this way.