Statistics by definition is presenting empirical data and that’s what most people think of when they hear statistics. Most scientists studying statistics actually spend much more of their time developing and studying methods of data collection rather than crunching numbers. The reason for this is you cannot have meaning statistics if the data set is not accurate. And I love you all and your experiences matter but they bear no scientific weight.
4 out of 5 dentists agree that every time you see a static it’s complete and total bullshit. Flawed data collection leads to flawed results which leads to flawed conclusions. But people sure do get excited when numbers validate their biases.