The Stones at Big Thunder Mountain!

No, not the Rolling Stones, though these stones were rolling.

Y’all know I love stats, but this article popped up on my FB feed tonight and I have to share it. It is about some nifty research conducted while riding Big Thunder Mountain at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. It seems a certain urologist noticed that some of his kidney stone patients mentioned passing small stones while riding Big Thunder Mountain. At first, he discounted their stories as anecdotal and unlikely to be related to riding the roller coaster. But as the number of similar stories increased over the years, he decided to investigate.

And he found that there was something happening and that where you were in the train, front or rear, made a big difference in the proportion of stones passed. So, perhaps some of us can write off our next trip to Disney as a medical expense on our taxes.

ps. Probably a z-test for proportions, Yes?

Stones Have Been Popping Out of People Who Ride Roller Coasters

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