Slate recently reported on how the U.S. government tallies the number of jobs lost in a month, however the total number of jobs lost in a month is only one number or statistic in a realm of many surrounding the economy and specifically unemployment.
While hearing statistics like "[t]he U.S. economy shed 298,000 jobs in August" from Brian Palmer in his September 3, 2009 Slate.com article "How Does the Government Count Lost Jobs?" can be overwhelming, if these large numbers can be considered in context and if the American population learns how these numbers are calculated, the statistics can be better appreciated and more easily understood.
What Is Statistics?
Statistics is a field of mathematics that uses large numbers and aggregates of data to analyze and calculate information. The larger the amount of data used, the more meaningful the statistical result is.
