Question for you (copied from the main board)

[Cool Texan]

Question for each of you...

During the course of the year, more or less salmon than expected may cross over Bonneville Dam. Aside from the fishing potential, why do you or anyone else care? If a LOT of fish come over, so what? If not many come over, so what?

Trying to button up a statistics paper which is trying to find correlation of some variables and salmon crossing the Bonneville Dam, and need to be able to state why this is important and worth looking at.

Thanks!!! Let the answers/opinions flow!!

[Cool Texan]

ttt

[Hoosier Daddy]

Some would probably argue it has some bearing on recovery issues for salmon. I don't buy that, I think we have been lucky the last few years. But that would be one thing. Related strictly to fishing is the economic impact of fisheries. Another thing that's harder to assess is cultural importance, symbol of the NW and all that stuff, and of course tribal historical use. I suppose the ecosystem arguments; ie import of ocean nutrients to less productive freshwater systems, stuff like that, could be made too.

[lost_sailor]

God cares

[Cool Texan]

I know that God cares, and I know that the river cares....but why would YOU care? Why would anyone care? Lets assume for a moment that God is on vacation...and lets assume that the CR acts like a giant aquarium and cleans/feeds itself. All that aside...who cares if 2 salmon come over the dam or if 2,000,000 come over?

[fishgirl]

I care because I think they're cute. It's fun to go to a stream where they're spawning to watch. Kind of like birdwatching??

[Kruechief]

CT,

I was a Sociology Major (shut up Geek ) anyway, they made this liberal arts brain of mine endure up to junior statistics! :shocked:

Needless to say, my GPA plummeted.

What you have is statistics halitosis. :whazzup:

You must immediately remove yourself from all statistical related jargon, i.e. red marbles, blue marbles, playing cards, chi square, etc... [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img]

If not your brain may implode.

Krue

[The Fishing Geek]

A healthy run of fish is generally a positive sign that the ecosystem is healthy. A healthy ecosystem affects everyone.

[Cool Texan]

10 days and I will be free of my chi squares, simple regressions, multiple regressions, t-stats, p values, and even my Durbin Watsons.

Then, good Lord willing, I'll never have to take the class again...

[1pump]

I'll know I'm in hell when I find myself sitting in a statistics class. [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img]

The only reason I look at fish counts is to see if the run predictions were anywhere near accurate. And maybe to see when the peak of the run occured.

[Lucky Bamboo]

I look at the stats because it's interesting :whazzup: ...because it gives the fish counter something to do (besides play solitare)...because it's a great thing to take kids to see when the runs peak :shocked: ...and my husband gets excited :tongue: