But among those who don’t like classical music, 77% say they are very good at most things that interest them.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to dislike classical music if you both:
don’t like V8 juice drinks
don’t own any leather clothing, aside from footwear or belts
NO CORRELATION
People who don’t like classical music are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
say their emotions influence their decisions more than logic/reasoning
say they would eat a tasty-looking burger made from flesh cloned from their own body
think it’s better to propose when no one but the two of you is around
Cola Discernment
21% of people say they have never been bitten by an animal.
But among those who can’t tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi, 39% say they have never been bitten by an animal.
----------------
56% of people dislike the smell of gasoline.
But among those who can’t tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi, 71% dislike the smell of gasoline.
----------------
44% of people regularly skip breakfast.
But among those who can’t tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi, only 32% regularly skip breakfast.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to be unable to tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi if you both:
don’t have a TV in your bedroom
prefer tea to coffee
NO CORRELATION
People who can’t tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
have served on a jury
regularly participate in sweepstakes and other giveaways
value liberty over security
Cold Weather
37% of people have used the word obsequious in conversation.
But among those who prefer cold weather over hot, 48% have used the word obsequious in conversation.
----------------
49% of people are Coldplay fans.
But among those who prefer cold weather over hot, only 39% are Coldplay fans.
----------------
37% of people don’t make wishes before they blow out their birthday candles.
But among those who prefer cold weather over hot, 47% don’t make wishes before they blow out their birthday candles.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to prefer cold weather over hot if you both:
don’t regularly exercise
refuse to do the Electric Slide at wedding receptions
NO CORRELATION
People who prefer cold weather over hot are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
keep their friends close and their enemies closer
regularly skip breakfast
prefer buffalo sauce over barbecue sauce
Cologne/Perfume
56% of people think that restricting the definition of marriage to only two people discriminates against those in polygamous and polyamorous relationships.
But among those who regularly wear cologne/perfume, only 34% think that restricting the definition of marriage to only two people discriminates against those in polygamous and polyamorous relationships.
----------------
19% of people regularly wear a necklace.
But among those who regularly wear cologne/perfume, 39% regularly wear a necklace.
----------------
41% of people prefer amphibians to reptiles.
But among those who regularly wear cologne/perfume, 59% prefer amphibians to reptiles.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to regularly wear cologne/perfume if you both:
use air freshener in your home
dislike lamb
NO CORRELATION
People who regularly wear cologne/perfume are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
have a library card
prefer sweet potatoes to potatoes
prefer sweet snacks over salty
Corn on the Cob
34% of people prefer pistachios already shelled.
But among those who prefer their corn off the cob, 47% prefer pistachios already shelled.
----------------
67% of people never chew on their pens or pencils.
But among those who prefer their corn off the cob, 78% never chew on their pens or pencils.
----------------
73% of people say they are introverts.
But among those who prefer their corn off the cob, 83% say they are introverts.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to prefer your corn off the cob if you both:
prefer peas sans pod
don’t like onions on your burgers
NO CORRELATION
People who prefer their corn off the cob are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
be able to recognize the quadratic formula if they saw it
not regularly wear a necklace
dislike electric toothbrushes
STATISTICS 101:
SELECTION BIAS
When you’re polling a group of people, and you want their opinions to be a good representation of the population at large, your poll needs to include a representative sample of people.
Let’s suppose that your likelihood of enjoying heavy metal music diminishes with age. If you were to poll only young people or only senior citizens about whether they like heavy metal, you might find that their answers are not representative of the total population. In these cases, we say that selection bias has skewed your results.
Or let’s suppose that you want to conduct a poll about privacy issues. You decide to randomly call 1,000 phone numbers listed in the phone book. This will exclude people with unlisted numbers, who may have strong opinions about privacy issues; in addition, depending on the phone book, it may also exclude the growing number of people who don’t have a landline telephone. Again, selection bias has skewed your results.
In a certain sense, selection bias is unavoidable when you’re conducting polls, because the percentage of the population that refuses to respond to poll questions will always be missing from your sample.
But the effects of selection bias can be minimized by making the effort to understand the demographics of the population whose views you are trying to gauge and making sure that the demographics of the people you poll match them as closely as possible.
Country Music
47% of people like the singer Meat Loaf.
But among those who like country music, 61% like the singer Meat Loaf.
----------------
45% of people have positive feelings about athletic scholarships.
But among those who like country music, 56% have positive feelings about athletic scholarships.
----------------
34% of people struggle more with pride than with low self-esteem.
But among those who like country music, 45% struggle more with pride than with low self-esteem.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to be a country music fan if you both:
consider yourself to be patriotic
have worse-than-average reflexes
NO CORRELATION
People who like country music are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
prefer tropical fruits to tropical climates
be open to being a foster parent
rather earn more than work less
Court Testimony
36% of people have been on the radio.
> But among those who have testified in court, 62% have been on the radio.
----------------
32% of people say Roger Ebert was their favorite film critic.
But among those who have testified in court, 55% say Roger Ebert was their favorite film critic.
----------------
43% of people would drink Tang only under duress.
But among those who have testified in court, 64% would drink Tang only under duress.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to have testified in court if you both:
have children
have ridden in an emergency vehicle
NO CORRELATION
People who have testified in court are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
be more likely to sneeze into their sleeve than their hand
prefer essay test questions over multiple choice questions
prefer flat-front pants
Credit Cards
69% of people are bad at writing love letters.
But among those who prefer credit cards over debit cards, 85% are bad at writing love letters.
----------------
52% of people are content with their present financial situation.
But among those who prefer credit cards over debit cards, 65% are content with their present financial situation.
----------------
46% of people think clowns are fun.
But among those who prefer credit cards over debit cards, 59% think clowns are fun.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to prefer credit cards over debit cards if you both:
own jazz albums
think that graffiti, no matter how well done, is still a crime
NO CORRELATION
People who prefer credit cards over debit cards are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
have fainted in public
say they would rather change their marital status for a day than their sex
think it’s OK to talk on the phone while on the toilet
Credit Union Members
63% of people have been prescribed a powerful painkiller.
But among credit union members, 78% have been prescribed a powerful painkiller.
----------------
59% of people do their own taxes.
But among credit union members, 73% do their own taxes.
----------------
45% of people prefer a vertical tire swing over a horizontal tire swing.
But among credit union members, 58% prefer a vertical tire swing.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to be a credit union member if you both:
are fluent in only one language
have been involved in scouting
NO CORRELATION
Credit union members are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
prefer banana-flavored Runts over bananas
like Robin Williams better in his serious roles than in his funny roles
spell well
Cremation Hesitation
36% of people think couples should use traditional wedding vows.
But among those who don’t want to be cremated, 48% think couples should use traditional wedding vows.
----------------
51% of people think Mariah Carey has more talent than Christina Aguilera.
But among those who don’t want to be cremated, 62% think Mariah Carey has more talent than Christina Aguilera.
----------------
37% of people think the mainstream media have a liberal bias.
But among those who don’t want to be cremated, 48% think the mainstream media have a liberal bias.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to not want to be cremated if you both:
oppose gay marriage
would rather host the Academy Awards than the Grammys
NO CORRELATION
People who don’t want to be cremated are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
have food allergies
think IKEA is cool
be fans of Jim Carrey
Cruises
47% of people say their closest platonic friend is not more attractive than them.
But among those who have been on a cruise, 63% say their closest platonic friend is not more attractive than them.
----------------
32% of people have been thrown a surprise party.
But among those who have been on a cruise, 44% have been thrown a surprise party.
----------------
75% of people aren’t picky about foods touching each other on their dinner plate.
But among those who have been on a cruise, 88% aren’t picky about foods touching each other on their dinner plate.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to have been on a cruise if you both:
can swim freestyle
think fireworks displays are better when they’re set to music
NO CORRELATION
People who have been on a cruise are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
be more likely to curse than cry when they’re hurt
like tomato soup
prefer silence when they sleep
Crying and Cursing
40% of people have been in a fistfight.
But among those who are more likely to cry than curse when they’re hurt, only 16% have been in a fistfight.
----------------
66% of people think nails that grew twice as quickly would be more annoying than hair that grew twice as quickly.
But among those who are more likely to cry than curse when they’re hurt, 86% think nails that grew twice as quickly would be more annoying.
----------------
36% of people prefer cherry cola to regular cola.
But among those who are more likely to cry than curse when they’re hurt, 54% prefer cherry cola to regular cola.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to cry rather than curse when you’re hurt if you both:
are a woman
have never projectile vomited
NO CORRELATION
People who are more likely to cry than curse when they’re hurt are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
follow the “if it’s yellow, let it mellow” rule of water conservation
have taken an Internet hiatus
frequently text
Cursive
30% of people say they have nice handwriting.
But among those who write primarily in cursive, 51% say they have nice handwriting.
----------------
70% of people want whipped cream on top of their sundae.
But among those who write primarily in cursive, only 57% want whipped cream on top of their sundae.
----------------
47% of people would rather have a colostomy bag than a feeding tube.
But among those who write primarily in cursive, 60% would rather have a colostomy bag than a feeding tube.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to write primarily in cursive if you both:
have had a urinary tract infection
have cried over the death of someone you’ve never met
NO CORRELATION
People who write primarily in cursive are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
consider themselves unlucky
know which directions “port” and “starboard” refer to
like their shower temperature to be just short of scalding
Deat
h Penalty
58% of people dislike Big Government more than Big Business.
But among those who support capital punishment, only 40% dislike Big Government more than Big Business.
----------------
17% of people think women have it easier than men.
But among those who support capital punishment, 33% think women have it easier than men.
----------------
59% of people find straight hair more attractive than curly hair.
But among those who support capital punishment, 72% find straight hair more attractive than curly hair.
DOUBLE PLAY
You’re extremely likely to support capital punishment if you both:
think ambition influences success more than privilege
enjoy fiction more than nonfiction
NO CORRELATION
People who support capital punishment are almost exactly as likely as the average person to:
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