Source of well-known joke about statisticians?

May 4, 2014 2:50 AM

There's a well-known joke about statisticians. "Did you hear the one one about the statistician who drowned trying to wade across the river? He knew it was three feet deep...on average." I've searched for a source for this joke on the internet, but haven't found one. Does anyone have any idea where this joke originated? Call me an academic, but I feel the need to attribute it if I can.
posted by Philosopher Dirtbike to Grab Bag (2 answers total)

No idea, but the version I heard first goes:
Two statisticians are sitting in a bar alone, when Donald Trump walked in. They began cheering wildly.
The Donald: "WTF?"
Statistician: "The average income for people in this room just skyrocketed!"
posted by IAmBroom at 9:12 AM on May 5, 2014

I don't have the full citation, but the version I have is "Then there is the man who drowned crossing a stream with an average depth of six inches.", and is attributed to W.I.E. Gates.
posted by nixxon at 2:07 PM on May 5, 2014