Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for July 29, 2014

And he got a D in math?

actualy Hobbes made them

The chart of good parenting.

My gosh, Calvin! You’re way far ahead of me in the “chart” department! I foresee a Statistics whiz in the future… ;)

Just think what that little shudderperbuttonhead could do if he had access to Powerpoint then.

He uses the time he should be doing his homework.

Some people really can create their own facts.

that little meathead put time on the ordinate! maybe Hobbes did make the charts

Dad has never been subjected to an assessment of his parenting that contained such graphic illustrations.

Here’s a very early one, from back when Calvin looked smaller and his hair hadn’t grown as much. This was Bill Watterson’s 15th Calvin and Hobbes strip:Click here: Calvin and Hobbes (December 2, 1985)Here’s a Peanuts strip drawn by Charles Schulz 21 years before the Calvin and Hobbes strip above, and 26 years before today’s Calvin and Hobbes:Click here: Peanuts (October 10, 1964)And here’s another Peanuts strip, this one from near the end of Charles Schulz’s 49-year career, drawn 3 years after Calvin and Hobbes ended. It’s easy to think of Peanuts as an early precursor to Calvin and Hobbes, since Bill Watterson wasn’t even born when Peanuts began. But Schulz’s career was so long that he was still drawing Peanuts after Watterson retired.Click here: Peanuts (November 23, 1998)Note that this 1998 Peanuts strip is a lot taller than the 1964 strip above. Peanuts was about the same height as Calvin and Hobbes in the later years.

Click here: The Wizard of Id (November 9, 2012)

A sample of one? Sounds like most statistical “samples” used by advertisers.

Calvin could have gone nutz with PowerPoint.

Statistics, and damn lies, and all that.Who in Calvin’s class would sit still for one of his polls?

Based on how accurate modern polling is, I’d say Calvin’s Dad has nothing to worry about.

Although I spent most of my life running my own business, after I sold the business I spend several years working for companies of various sizes and served mostly as an analyst..One thing I can support is two different folks can use the same source of data to support two different agendas. I am sure this is not news to most of you; but, when someone quotes a statistic to support their agenda, it is best not to place too much emphasis on the results.

Figures don’t lie but liars can figure.

Yesterday somebody (I forget who) asked about the article about Calvin’s farewell meeting with Hobbes. Many of you have already seen it, but for those who have not. it is a must read. Warning: It is a tearjerker.

http://www.tickld.com/x/this-guy-just-changed-the-way-we-seecalvin-and-hobbes

@spirit1942: Well, maybe it’s legitimate for Calvin’s chart to have time on the Y-axis, if he’s looking at it as a correlation between a series of hypothetical bedtimes and the corresponding popularity of his dad, rather than as a function of linear time in a particular evening. Note that his curve is increasing exponentially. If he had flipped the axes, it would be plateauing, and it would not have the desired psychological impact on his dad. Then again, it’s not clear that he is having much psychological impact on his dad anyway.

I had a boss like this once: wanted more data than was necessary. There is a difference between knowing where the beach is and knowing where every grain of sand on it is.

At age 11, our son created a powerpoint presentation on why he should be allowed to purchase the first person shooter game HALO. It really was an impressive effort, complete with screen grabs, quotes from the parents of his peers, and point by point addressing of our concerns. Even Edward Tufte would have been impressed.

He got the game.

I had a cousin who read C&H as a little girl and pulled these same polls on her dad. Of course, my uncle was the one that introduced her to Calvin and was also a fan, so he had as much fun with it as she did.Lost them both within a year of each other, her to a car accident, him to a stroke. I miss them still.

@FANOLIO: Sorry, I wrote that one in Math-geek-eese.

Actually it was Benjamin Disraeli, British Prime Minister (1874-1880)

Calvin and his pet tiger Hobbes have compiled a list of charts to show Calvin’s dad how his “rating” would rise if he would allow Calvin a later bedtime. Dad asks “how long did you take making these charts?” Oh fiddlesticks, Calvin’s dad!

His axes are reversed in the third panel.