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US Internet Usage vs US R&D Expenditure

US Internet Usage and US R&D Expenditure correlate at r = +0.74 over 28 years (1996–2023), p < 0.0001. With the time trend removed, r = -0.37. Direction flips without the trend.

Verdict: Direction flips without the trend. The raw correlation is 0.74, but once each series' time trend is removed it becomes -0.37. The year-to-year movements run the opposite way to the long-run trends, so the headline number is misleading.

Pearson r
+0.74
p-value
< 0.0001
Years compared (n)
28 (1996–2023)
95% confidence interval
0.50 to 0.87
Correlation with the time trend removed
-0.37

Sources

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Correlation does not imply causation. How the verdict is worked out.