Using implausibly precise statistics to give the appearance of truth and certainty, or using a negligible difference in data to draw incorrect inferences.
Examples:
- Tour Guide: This fossil right here is 120,000,003 years old. Guest: How do you know that? Tour Guide: Because when I started working here three years ago, the experts did some radiometric dating and told me that it was 120,000,000 years old.
Synonyms: over-precision, false precision, misplaced precision, spurious accuracy