Re:Programmers Need To Learn Statistics Or I Will Kill Them ...
by philwelch on Wednesday May 27, 2009 @03:42PM
(#629019)
I had largely the same reaction you did when I saw "minority" used that way.
You're right. "Minority" is a really bad word for what biohacker42 was trying to say, because many "minorities" (in terms of social status) are not numeric minorities. (Blacks in apartheid-era South Africa. Women throughout history.) As jfoutz mentioned, we both know a pointer is not a dog.
It's convenient that you misquoted me, too, because doing so leaves out the part where I already conceded that it's bad usage. Which leaves me at a loss as to what you're trying to add to the discussion--did you say something more than what I've already implied (and exhaustively reiterated here)?
You're right. "Minority" is a really bad word for what biohacker42 was trying to say, because many "minorities" (in terms of social status) are not numeric minorities. (Blacks in apartheid-era South Africa. Women throughout history.) As jfoutz mentioned, we both know a pointer is not a dog.
It's convenient that you misquoted me, too, because doing so leaves out the part where I already conceded that it's bad usage. Which leaves me at a loss as to what you're trying to add to the discussion--did you say something more than what I've already implied (and exhaustively reiterated here)?