Oxfordshire Schools STEM Forum welcomes Tim Harford

We were delighted to host acclaimed journalist, economist and broadcaster Tim Harford at this week’s Oxfordshire Schools STEM Forum (OSSF). Best known for explaining – and sometimes debunking – statistics on BBC Radio 4’s ‘More or Less’, Tim delivered an informative presentation about the world of statistics: ‘How to Make the World Add Up’.

Over 20 pupils from five different partner schools joined MCS pupils for this first event in this year’s OSSF programme. Max, Upper Sixth, shared this synopsis.

This week, we were honoured to have Tim Harford present a talk on navigating the complex world of statistics, hosted by the Oxfordshire Schools’ STEM Forum at Magdalen College School. The talk opened with the classic correlation versus causation problem of countries with more storks having more babies. Sorry for the spoiler, but storks don’t cause babies. Harford then offered three practical rules for evaluating any statistical argument: stay calm (recognise your emotional response), get context (what’s being measured, where did the data come from, and how it compares to relevant research), and stay curious. The most interesting part was when Harford illustrated this with the story of research in the 1950s linking smoking to lung cancer. The tobacco industry then exploited the public’s scepticism of statistics to shoot down this idea. This was an entertaining and enlightening talk, and thank you very much to Tim Harford for taking the time to speak to us.

The OSSF serves as a platform for students in Years 10 to Upper Sixth to explore cutting-edge topics, gain valuable insights from leading professionals, and deepen their understanding of the world of STEM. Through talks, workshops, and collaborative activities, the forum fosters curiosity, encourages critical thinking, and sparks a lifelong passion for science.

A huge thank you to Tim Harford for kicking off this year’s programme!