Editing 373: The Data So Far

{{comic
| number    = 373
| date      = January 21, 2008
| title     = The Data So Far
| image     = the data so far.png
| titletext = But THIS guy, he might be for real!
}}

==Explanation==
There are often people who claim to have supernatural powers, but then when their powers are tested by some sort of experiment, the experiment refutes their claims. This comic summarizes all the data from such experiments, observing that given the data, it's very unlikely that supernatural powers actually exist.

The title text refers to a person who has claimed to have supernatural powers, and suggests that he might really have such powers. This invokes the fact that absence of evidence is not the same as evidence of absence, although there has never previously been a confirmed example of a person with superpowers. This does not prove that this is certainly impossible. However, the graph above suggests that, although not impossible, such an event would be highly unlikely. No matter how much evidence we collect, there is always some positive (but vanishingly small) chance that some person may hold supernatural powers.

Alternatively, the title text explains that even though there is no reason to believe that anyone has any super powers, some people are always ready to believe the next one to claim so - very naive - and the exact opposite meaning of the one described above. Knowing [[Randall]]'s comic, this seems more likely. 

The title itself may be a reference to the TV show {{w|Supernatural (U.S. TV series)|Supernatural's}} recap segment, "The Road So Far."

==Transcript==
:[Bar graph titled "Claims of Supernatural Powers" and has two sets of data. The first data set is labeled "Confirmed By Experiment" and is empty. The second data set is "Refuted By Experiment" and goes to the top of the graph.]

==Trivia==
See also comic [[1122: Electoral Precedent]] for other false rules that appeared to hold only due to an absence of evidence and [[1235: Settled]] for more of Randall's thoughts on hoaxes and unusual claims.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Bar charts]]
[[Category:Paranormal]]