The birthday effect is a statistical anomaly that shows higher likelihood of death on or near your birthday. For the Pudding, Russell Samora analyzes mortality data to see if this effect is for real.
The differing results across studies highlight how methodological choices—from sample selection to statistical analysis—can dramatically shape our findings. When studying something as basic as birthdays and death, how we approach the problem shapes what answers we find.
Warning: this is a statistics lesson in disguise so you might learn something.
