Statistics plays a role in virtually every facet of our lives. And throughout the pandemic, we’ve heard more stats than ever before, whether through headlines about Covid infection rates or vaccine effectiveness. But how are these figures calculated? How do we know when data is manipulated for nefarious reasons, and when it represents some true thing out there in the world? Lucky for us, Harvard Phd student Kareem Carr joined WITHpod for a heady conversation to break that and more down. Earlier in 2021, he shook up Twitter with a post about 2+2 equaling five, a thread aimed at provoking some meditations on the nature of mathematical truth. He joins to discuss that, the importance of neutral AI algorithms, why statistics are anti-racist and why it’s essential to have a healthy level of skepticism of numbers. Sidenote: we’re approaching our holiday WITHpod Mailbag. Email us at withpod@gmail.com to share what you love about the podcast and what’s on your mind.