• Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        Only all the children in Lake Wobegon are above average. It’s balanced out by them all turning into idiots when they become adults.

      • Deebster@lemmy.ml
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        6 months ago

        Ackchyually, they never said which average they meant, you just assumed mean.

        • Karyoplasma@discuss.tchncs.de
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          6 months ago

          Yes. In a normal, or Gaussian, distribution, the data is symmetrically distributed around the mean and thus mean (average value), mode (most frequent value) and median (middle value) all fall on the same point, which is the highest point of the curve.

      • Aceticon@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        True, but those who know what “median” means probably also know what a “quartile” means, so if I used “median” it would’ve made my comment less of an “obvious, duh!” thing and spoil the unstated point I’m making as well as the joke.

        Best leave the mathematical incorrectness there to preserve the feeling of obviousness.