Spurious Correlation and Data that Lies

Numbers might not lie—but they definitely mislead. In our data-obsessed age, we love to uncover patterns that seem to explain everything, from the stock market to human happiness. But without context or critical thinking, even the cleanest datasets can tell absurd (and dangerous) stories. This post dives into the world of spurious correlations—where margarine predicts divorce, cheese dictates stock prices, and journalists mistake coincidence for causation. Through humor and hard truths, it explores how data can both amuse and misinform—and why every correlation needs a thoughtful human interpreter.