M2. Discussion: Statistics and Online Dating
Topic
Statistics has a wide range of real-world applications. The article “This Is What Happens When A Math Genius Hacks OkCupid” shows how statistics can be used to help someone meet the love of his or her life:
What if you could meet, woo, and win your fiancé in just 90 days? That\\\'s exactly what Chris McKinlay, a Boston mathematician, did in June 2012. McKinlay was working on his PhD at UCLA in June 2012 when he first joined OkCupid. After answering 350 questions from the thousands available on the site, he discovered that he only had a compatibility rating of over 90% with fewer than 100 women. Six disappointing dates later, and McKinlay realized that something needed to change. He decided to apply his data skills to his dating life.2
To complete the Discussion activity, please do the following:
Answer each question fully. Use a minimum of 250 words for a complete discussion post. While it is not required in this discussion, feel free to bring in outside resources to support your answers. Outside resources include materials outside of the textbook, such as a website.
Do you think it is plausible for someone to meet the person of his or her dreams by using statistics in experiments and decision making? Why or why not?
Do you think McKinlay’s approach would (or would have) worked for you? Why or why not?
How do you think you could use statistics to experiment or make decisions in other scenarios?
2Romano, E. “This Is What Happens When A Math Genius Hacks OkCupid.” Dating Sight Reviews (blog). March 03, 2014. Accessed May 23, 2017. http://www.datingsitesreviews.com/article.php?story=this-is-what-happens-when-a-math-genius-hacks-okcupid (Links to an external site.).
