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Updated example of using baby names to illustrate bimodal distributions.

The thing about my way of teaching stats is that my cool, novel examples get old really fast. Like, pop culture is on a thirty-day cycle. Anyway, YEARS ago, 2014 to be exact, I blogged about illustrating bimodal data distributions  using baby name data from the Social Security Administration. Specifically, when an older name comes back into vogue, it has a bimodal distribution when you plot time on the X axis.  I stand by this example. However, all of the data illustrations come from 2014. When our traditionally aged college students were 6 or 7. Which makes this example feel a little stale. However, here is some data,  courtesy of Redditor  fevaah ,  showing  old names that are back in vogue through 2025 ! And Eleanor, Violet, Nora, and Hazel are here, illustrating bimodal distributions for a new generation. If you used my old baby-name data, this is a quick, easy refresh for your lectures (or a fun new addition if you didn't).  If this idea was help...

Natural graph created by the sun, a magnifying glass, and a tree.

Someone on Reddit posted this cool picture of a...contraption? I'll go with contraption. Anyway, it automatically generates a chart of the amount of sunlight per day by burning a log. A Twitter follower recognized this as a Campbell-Stokes recorder.


This is beautiful art and data visualization from Hood-Glen Park in San Francisco.

How to use in class:
1) Make a bunch of really dumb logarithm jokes.
2) A nice introduction to data visualization. Maybe this could be paired with more traditional sources of weather data.
3) Also makes me think of other naturally occurring charts:




Also, while less pretty, think about all the data that is automatically created every time Google Maps identifies your location (and then warns everyone using Google Maps to avoid traffic slowdowns) or Netflix provides you with recommendations based on viewing habits. The Campbell-Stokes recorder could serve as a metaphorical segue into a discussion about all the automated data collection that goes on around us at all times.

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