Is work still worthwhile? Are villagers more likely to vote for populist parties than city dwellers? Are electric cars more environmentally friendly than combustion engines? Are foreigners more criminal? These are all supposedly simple, but socially relevant questions that can cause tempers to flare at kitchen tables or in offices. If you want to remain objective and really get to the bottom of things instead of letting your gut feeling dictate the answer, there is often only one thing that helps: a look at the data. But where can I find suitable figures? And how can I extract the necessary information from them?
The course "Fact checking with data" by Prof. Thomas Hotz, Head of the Group of Probability and Mathematical Statistics, is part of the Studium generale at TU Ilmenau and addresses precisely this issue. In the winter semester 2024/25, participants in the course learned strategies for checking assertions using the appropriate data basis and filtering out relevant facts. In teams, students and doctoral candidates first agreed on questions that were formulated as concisely as possible and which they wanted to answer in the following weeks. First, they translated the highly simplified formulations into measurable and verifiable claims. It became clear that issues of great social importance are much more complex than we would like in our search for a simple black-and-white answer.
Sharpening our awareness of data misuse
Only publicly accessible sources were used as data material - election results, figures from the Federal Statistical Office or crime statistics.
On the one hand, the participants learn how difficult it is to answer seemingly simple questions based on facts, but also that this can be achieved - with limitations. This encourages them to take a critical approach to claims in the media that appear to be backed up by statistics and sharpens their awareness of the misuse of data for this purpose
says Prof. Hotz, summarizing the aim of the course.
The course participants also have positive feedback. Over the course of the semester, they learned much more than the answers to the four questions they posed at the beginning - namely how to use a scientific approach for home use in such a way that they can keep a cool head and an eye on the facts in emotionally charged debates.
The course was developed as part of the THInKI project. This joint project between Ilmenau University of Technology and Friedrich Schiller University Jena aims to create and further develop interdisciplinary courses on artificial intelligence technologies. The ability to handle data more critically and to know what conclusions can be drawn from it is essential for their application.
Contact
Prof. Thomas Hotz
Head of Group Probability and Mathematical Statistics