Taking the Census, With Cellphones

sciencehabit writes: If you want to figure out how many people live in a particular part of your country, you could spend years conducting home visits and mailing out questionnaires. But a new study describes a quicker way. Scientists have figured out how to map populations using cellphone records — an approach that doesn't just reveal who lives where, but also where they go every day. The researchers also compared their results to population density data gathered through remote sensing technologies, a widely-used method that relies on satellite imaging to gather detailed information on population settlement patterns and estimate population counts. They found that the two methods are comparable in accuracy when checked against actual survey-based census data, but estimates from mobile phone data can provide more timely information, down to the hours.

Comments

Unconstitutional for redistricting

[140Mandak262Jamuna]

Some states hold that the constitution only authorizes the government to count the people. Which means you can not estimate the population. You can not apply corrections to the counted number based on statistics. Most of the under counted populations are undocumented migratory workers and minorities. So such corrections go towards the Democrats. So most Republicans advance that argument. But using cell phones would bias the sample towards slightly more affluent populations and might skew towards Republicans. So they might not be opposed to this.

When it comes to the second amendment, the founders allowed for all possible advances in technology and if one can make a nuclear tipped bazooka it can't be regulated or banned. As long as it can be carried by one person, it is constitutional. When it comes to census, no advancement in counting, estimating sciences are allowed to be used. How can you hold both view points at the same time? Easy, they are time traveling mind readers, they go back to 1776 and precisely understand what the founders meant, never mind what the wrote down, never mind how SCOTUS interprets it.

Normally I would be able to find equally absurd mutually exclusive contradictory view points held by Democrats to "balance" the posting and burnish my credentials as a "neutral" guy. But it is getting increasingly difficult. And I no longer care to be the "neutral" guy. And I have karma to burn.