fun facts for the next time someone asks
Anscombe’s Quartet : Four sets of numbers that look identical on paper (mean average, variance, correlation, etc.) but look completely different when graphed. Describes a situation where exact calculations don’t offer a good representation of how the world works.
Morgan Housel • 100 Little Ideas
Tom Whitwell • 52 things I learned in 2024
Behavioral Inevitability : “History never repeats itself; man always does.” – Voltaire
Morgan Housel • 100 Little Ideas
björk said that trying to communicate through talking feels like trying to put the ocean through a straw
Hanlon’s Razor: “Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.”
Morgan Housel • 100 Little Ideas
Pareto Principle : The majority of outcomes are driven by a minority of events.
Morgan Housel • 100 Little Ideas
McNamara Fallacy : A belief that rational decisions can be made with quantitative measures alone, when in fact the things you can’t measure are often the most consequential. Named after Defense Secretary McNamara, who tried to quantify every aspect of the Vietnam War.
Morgan Housel • 100 Little Ideas
Weasel Words : Phrases that appear to have meaning but convey nothing tangible. “Growth was solid last quarter,” or “Many people believe.”
Morgan Housel • 100 Little Ideas
Buridan’s Ass : A thirsty donkey is placed exactly midway between two pails of water. It dies because it can’t make a rational decision about which one to choose. A form of decision paralysis.