ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Algebraic statistics

Algebraic statistics is a special way of using math to study data. Imagine you have a bunch of toys and you want to figure out how they fit together. Algebraic statistics is like playing with blocks to help you see which ones fit together the best.

First, you would group together toys that are similar, like all the blocks or all the dolls. This is called "clustering." You can then use math to help you see how these groups relate to each other. Imagine that each group of toys is a different color block. You can then build a tower using these blocks to see how they fit together. The tower you build helps you understand how each group of toys is connected to the others.

Next, you would use more math to see how often certain groups of toys show up together. This is called "probability." For example, if you notice that every time you play with the block toys, you also play with the puzzle toys, then that means the block toy group and the puzzle toy group are connected in some way. Using probability, you can figure out how likely it is that these groups will show up together again in the future.

Algebraic statistics might sound like a big, complicated thing, but it's really just a fun way to organize your toys and figure out which ones you like best!