Longini specializes in the mathematical and statistical theory of epidemics.

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Academia has long used gaming theory to assess the statistical likelihood of various outcomes.

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The algorithm could be of great interest to Twitter, which could charge a premium for ads linked to popular topics, but it also represents a new approach to statistical analysis that could, in theory, apply to any quantity that varies over time: the duration of a bus ride, ticket sales for films, maybe even stock prices.

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Although the Super Bowl indicator may be a statistical oddity, the presidential election cycle theory appears to have some basis to it.

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In the early 1950s, another doctoral student named Harry Markowitz posited a statistical approach to investment selection called Modern Portfolio Theory.

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Mechner said that in theory it should, but in practice execution data included a huge amount of fundamental statistical noise.

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Some economists say the theory explains why many people don't feel great about their financial situations, despite statistical evidence of a very strong economy.

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