Post #1261260
2026-03-24 17:49 UTC
You also see it when people are switching between units. For example, a journalist asking Google for a unit conversion on an approximate figure in one system of measurement into another.
"The car went another two kilometers (1.243 miles) before it was stopped by the police."
"He was said to be about 6 feet (182.88 cm) tall."
Such numerical solecisms are all the more ironic in outlets that claim they value accuracy in their reporting.
Replies (2)
-
@kevin@mastodon.km6g.us 2026-03-24 18:01
@kevlin Would statements like "over 10 new features" fall into this category? It's an intentionally imprecise statement in the hope that a gullible reader/listener might think the actual number is 90, when of course the number is 11.
-
@mspcommentary@mastodon.online 2026-04-06 08:06
@kevlin related to this, I think, is that Excel cannot display numbers to a certain number of significant figures; it only does to a certain number of decimal places.