California Mathematicians Develop Equation to Prevent Shootings

[BainsBane]

Mathematicians say that statistical data shows that gun control is the best option to save lives.

In an attempt to bring a scientific and data-driven approach to the debate surrounding gun control, two mathematicians from the University of California, Irvine have designed an equation based on statistical data that says reducing the availability of guns will reduce shooting deaths in America.

The husband-and-wife team, Dominik Wodarz and Natalia Komarova, used statistical data from existing studies on gun violence to create different measurements for their equation to predict what is the best method to prevent shootings. After plugging in numbers for different situations, the duo came to the conclusion that, at least for one-on-one shootings, gun control is the more beneficial option. Their findings were published on Friday in the journal PLOS ONE.

"We have now developed a scientific framework where we can argue about scientific data and assumptions, rather than having an emotional debate," Wodarz told U.S. News. "The framework has identified exactly what needs to be measured statistically in order to make these predictions."

Wodarz and Komarova evaluated factors such as the number of people who own guns, how many of those people carry a gun with them, and the likelihood that a person could avoid death by using a gun as defense. The team also looked at studies that evaluated the effect of reduced gun availability on the number of guns in the criminal population. Just as a navigation system in a car uses factors such as distance, speed limits and traffic conditions to find the optimal route between two points, the couple used these statistical measurements to devise the most ideal method to prevent firearm deaths.

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/07/26/california-mathematicians-develop-equation-to-prevent-shootings


Study Findings here: http://www.usnews.com/pubfiles/uc-irvine-gun-study.pdf