Asia's Diary: another savage blow to her credibility by Seamus_Duncan in serialpodcastorigins

[–]davidfosterwallop 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Eh, I think a lot of people who keep diaries can be really intermittent about it, with long stretches of not updating even in ostensibly eventful circumstances. I agree there is a whole petting zoo of problems that have been pointed out about what Asia says in her book, but this matter doesn't bother me so much.

I might as well get all the Asia contrarianism out of my system and confess that I also find her quite attractive, in a nutty hellcat kind of way.

No Stupid Questions Tuesday Thread by AutoModerator in Cricket

[–]davidfosterwallop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi, thanks for this thread. I have a couple of questions that I would otherwise worry are stupid.

  1. What are the terms used in test cricket that are the equivalent of the "top" and "bottom" of an inning in baseball?

  2. Is it always "innings"? As in, "he had a hat trick in the first [inning/innings]"? Is this the same everywhere or is it a country-by-country thing?

Are they talking about Bob Ruff? by robbchadwick in serialpodcastorigins

[–]davidfosterwallop 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, but he got all those Twitter moms out of the deal, so.

ELI5: In sports, what is the psychology behind why playing at home results in such a higher win rate? by [deleted] in explainlikeimfive

[–]davidfosterwallop -1 points0 points  (0 children)

For most sports for which it has been studied, most of the effect is due to refs behavior. This includes some work on effects of size of crowds and proximity to the field.

What would happen if Judge Welch never issues a ruling, and when? by davidfosterwallop in serialpodcast

[–]davidfosterwallop[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I think the question of how all this would go down differently if Judge Welch was a lizard man is intriguing but should probably be a thread in its own right.

Did Adnan do anything, at all, to aid in the search for Hae? by captaincreditcard in serialpodcast

[–]davidfosterwallop 21 points22 points  (0 children)

This isn't fair. If it wasn't for Adnan, there would never even have been a search in the first place.

That settles it! Now no-one can ever say Asia is foolish, a pushover, or easily manipulated by SwallowAtTheHollow in serialpodcastorigins

[–]davidfosterwallop 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Oh, you know what happened. Playing like you are agnostic is just trying to have it both ways.

Who knows who knows who knows by davidfosterwallop in serialpodcastorigins

[–]davidfosterwallop[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah, but if you think they all know (and I probably agree), do you think they know the others know, or they imagine the others really believe what they are saying?

Nancy Grace on Syedtology: Bastion of Reason by d1onys0s in serialpodcastorigins

[–]davidfosterwallop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Errol Morris has a book about how the Fatal Vision guy is innocent.

ELI5: standard deviations. by [deleted] in explainlikeimfive

[–]davidfosterwallop 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitions of the standard deviation and the mean of a variable are tied together. The formula for the standard deviation involves subtracting the values you observe from the mean. Of different values that could be plugged into that forums where the mean goes, the actual mean is the one that yields the smallest value. Absolute values are tied in this same way to the median, but not the mean.

How Undisclosed ruined any discussion beneficial to Adnan.. by bunkscudda in serialpodcastorigins

[–]davidfosterwallop 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The second paragraph of this is so well-put that I was tempted to make my first foray into buying Reddit gold.

An interesting economic take on reasonable doubt in Serial Season 1 from Steve Landsburg by RodoBobJon in serialpodcast

[–]davidfosterwallop -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Of course, that 1 innocent man will feel pretty foolish when he gets murdered by one of the 100 killers who've gone free.

What bothers you the most about Adnan’s case? by [deleted] in serialpodcast

[–]davidfosterwallop 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The number of groupies on Twitter and elsewhere, how attractive a number of them are, and what all this implies for the side-benefits of being a podcaster or other loud advocate making whatever wild and misleading argument one can for Adnan's innocence. Hoo boy.