PA RT

4

The State of the World

Your great adventure in the world of numbers is almost over, at least for now. Hopefully, you’ve
enjoyed enough of this tour to want to visit at least some of these areas again.

What’s left on the agenda? Well, when you’ve had a great adventure, you usually want to report
on your experience when you get home. Telling people about what you’ve seen and what you’ve
learned often means using some statistics, like the average rainfall in Thailand or the number of
people who ride the Tube every day in London. Statistics are numbers that summarize a larger
collection of information, and the heading “Statistics” also includes charts and graphs and other
means of communicating the “big picture.” This last part of your journey is about assessing risks
and possibilities—probability—and summarizing what you’ve found out—statistics. These will
help you make smart decisions and share what you’ve learned with the folks back home. Include a
few photos—or charts and graphs—to keep things interesting for them.