What white people like

Pete Zicato · 09-08-2010, 01:54 PM

Quote:

What is it that makes a culture unique? How are whites, blacks, Asians, or whoever different from everybody else? What tastes, interests, and concepts define an ethnic group?

The folks at okcupid analyzed the text in 526,000 users profiles and sorted by their self-stated race and gender. Here's their take:

http://blog.okcupid.com/index.php/th...e-people-like/

glatt · 09-08-2010, 02:00 PM

interesting

Cloud · 09-08-2010, 02:02 PM

Tom Clancy, Van Halen, and golfing?

uh . . . .

Spexxvet · 09-08-2010, 02:07 PM

Very interesting

Pete Zicato · 09-08-2010, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cloud

Tom Clancy, Van Halen, and golfing?

uh . . . .

Well that's for white guys. Click on the woman symbol to see what white women like.

classicman · 09-08-2010, 02:43 PM

I wonder if thats stuff that people think the people of the opposite sex will be attracted to moreso than what they actually like

gvidas · 09-09-2010, 01:40 AM

It is very interesting. But it's slightly wrong to look at that and say, "that's a list of what (white/black/brown) people like."

Quote:

We then took all these people's profile essays (280 million words in total!) and isolated the words and phrases that made each racial group's essays statistically distinct from the others'.

My take on that description of methodology is: they're not looking at the most commonly-liked things of an ethnic group, so much as the things which that ethnic group mentions, but no other ethnic group does. As in:

Quote:

For instance, it turns out that all kinds of people list sushi as one of their favorite foods. But Asians are the only group who also list sashimi; it's a racial outlier.

The other side of this is that none of the word-clouds include sushi. They're pinpointing the essay differences by race, which is fine, so long as you don't confuse "stuff that only white men express any interest in" for "stuff white people like."

If they made it just lists of the most common phrases by ethnic group, without a specific emphasis on the differences, you would find a much, much, much more boring list, tied much more deeply to pop culture.

DanaC · 09-09-2010, 04:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by classicman

I wonder if thats stuff that people think the people of the opposite sex will be attracted to moreso than what they actually like

This ^

Clodfobble · 09-09-2010, 08:02 AM

I like how white chicks are the only ones who say "I'm blond." I'm shocked!

monster · 09-09-2010, 08:13 AM

Interesting.

Lamplighter · 09-09-2010, 08:21 AM

So lavender makes you smarter ?

xoxoxoBruce · 09-09-2010, 08:22 AM

No, just better at bullshitin'

09-08-2010, 02:02 PM	#3
Cloud ... Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 8,360	Tom Clancy, Van Halen, and golfing? uh . . . . __________________ "Guard your honor. Let your reputation fall where it will. And outlive the bastards!"

09-08-2010, 02:07 PM	#4
Spexxvet Makes some feel uncomfortable Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 10,346	Very interesting __________________ "I'm certainly free, nay compelled, to spread the gospel of Spex. " - xoxoxoBruce

09-08-2010, 02:43 PM	#6
classicman barely disguised asshole, keeper of all that is holy. Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 23,401	I wonder if thats stuff that people think the people of the opposite sex will be attracted to moreso than what they actually like __________________ "like strapping a pillow on a bull in a china shop" Bullitt

09-09-2010, 08:02 AM	#9
Clodfobble UNDER CONDITIONAL MITIGATION Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 20,012	I like how white chicks are the only ones who say "I'm blond." I'm shocked! __________________ My book My other book My spirit animal

09-09-2010, 08:13 AM	#10
monster I hear them call the tide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Perpetual Chaos Posts: 30,852	Interesting. __________________ The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity Amelia Earhart

09-08-2010, 02:00 PM	#2
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	interesting

09-09-2010, 08:21 AM	#11
Lamplighter Person who doesn't update the user title Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Bottom lands of the Missoula floods Posts: 6,402	So lavender makes you smarter ?

09-09-2010, 08:22 AM	#12
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	No, just better at bullshitin' __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

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