Data Playground
Pick a place and a metric. The charts update instantly — powered by Google Data Commons.
Correlation ≠ Causation: Just because two trends look similar doesn't mean one causes the other.
For a hilarious (and educational) look at meaningless correlations, check out
Tyler Vigen's Spurious Correlations
— where you'll discover that Nicolas Cage films correlate with swimming pool drownings. 🤦
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Tip: Change the parent place to switch the map scope. Use County for state-level views.
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When Data Misleads: A Friendly Reminder
This playground uses real, vetted data from Google Data Commons. But even legitimate data can mislead if we're not careful:
- Correlation isn't causation: Two trends moving together doesn't mean one causes the other
- Context matters: Always ask why metrics might be related before drawing conclusions
- Spurious patterns exist: With enough variables, you'll find coincidental matches (see Tyler Vigen's hilarious examples)
- Sample size matters: Some metrics have limited historical data — be skeptical of short trends
Want to learn more about data literacy? Check out Tyler Vigen's methodology and the Data Commons mission.
Spurious Correlations Hall of Fame
A cautionary (and hilarious) look at what happens when you let the data run wild. These are real correlations with zero causation: