The recent movie, The Imagination Game, dramatizing the life of Alan Turing and his role in dramatically shortening World War II, has showcased the importance of statistics and measurement during the War.  But, there is another interesting, albeit less familiar, story about how statistics and measurement helped to win the war.

The American military was losing a lot of planes over Europe. Large numbers of planes were being shot down and lost during engagements.  The military knew they needed to better protect planes, by providing them with better armor.  But, they faced a dilemma.  Some increase in armor was desirable, but too much armor would create weight problems.

To solve this problem, the military called in the "big guns"--the measurement and stat folks--specifically, the Statistical Research Group (SRG). Abraham Wald, from the SRG, was asked to help figure out how to best to armor planes to reduce losses.

As good researchers, they studied all the returning planes to see what areas showed the most damage.  To determine where best to put the armor, they counted the number of bullet holes per square foot for several areas of the plane.   The data clearly showed that the greatest number of bullet holes were in the fuselage and other areas of the plane (e.g., wings), suggesting armor was best placed in these locations.

To the surprise of those on the project and the military sponsors, Abraham Wald examined the data and proclaimed that the best place for the armament was the engine, not the fuselage.  Why? He suggested that the sample was "biased"; it did not include those planes that did not return--those that had been shot down.  He explained that the reason their study had found the fewest bullet holes per square foot on the engine, was that those that took significant gunfire to the engines were shot down.  The key was to look at what was not there.

An incomplete, biased sample almost led to the wrong conclusion. This is a dramatic example of something we see far too often in educational measurement and research: relying on inaccurate and incomplete samples.

Heaven February 2, 2015.  Heaven, known to many as Paradise, announced the release of the updated "Ten Commandments" today. The new Commandments, now named The Common Core Spiritual Standards (CCSS), come in response to the increased complexity of the modern world and a recognition of the greater challenges humans face.

The Vatican (official press agent for Heaven) released the document earlier this week.   "Much has changed since the first release of the Ten Commandments" said God, Creator and CEO of Heaven, Inc. "The modern world is a much more complex place and many humans are arriving to the Pearly Gates who are not Heaven-ready."

According to informed Angel sources "there has been increasing pressure on Heaven and the Creator to update the standards from both clergy and lay people."  "The Creator's level of dissatisfaction with today's humans has been widely cited in the Fundamentalist literature."

The first release of the Commandments put far too much emphasis on rote activities. The new commandments emphasize a more conceptual understanding of the world.  Abstract phrases such as "thou shall not" have been replaced with wording more consistent with the complexities of the modern world.

The release culminates a multi-year project involving committees of humans from many different environments.  There was wide consensus on what humans need to know and be able to do to be Heaven-ready. "These are not simply new standards imposed by Heaven, they reflect a multi-year process involving several thousand current residents of Paradise," the Creator added.

The CCSS includes both changes to existing standards and new standards. Some of the key changes appear in the following amendments (old and new text indicated):

Commandment:  Analyze the role of parents and caregivers and the value of maintaining those roles. (Honor thy Father and Mother)

Commandment: Identify appropriate models of human sexuality and the best ways to get involved.  (Thou shall not commit adultery)

There are several notable additions including the following three new commandments:

Commandment 11: Thou shall not wear plaid with stripes.

Commandment 12: Thou shall not text and drive.

Commandment 13: Thou shall stop complaining.

Those who are not yet dead will fall under the new standards.  However, there is a proposal to grandfather in those who are nearly dead. Conversations are under way with Hell to bring them in under the new standards.

Neither Obama nor Boehner could be reached for comment.