CORRELATION COMPETITION

(Deadline July 7th)

Find unexpected relationships between seemingly unrelated variables and create creative explanations for why they might be connected.

Prize Pool

Total Prize Pool: $200

There will be 2 winners for this competition, each receiving:

$100

Winners will be selected based on the judging criteria outlined below.

Objective

Find two seemingly unrelated variables that show a significant correlation. Your goal is to uncover an unexpected relationship and explain why this correlation might exist. The explanations can be humorous, imaginative, or absurd—just make it convincing.

Submission Guidelines

  • One Submission Per Participant

    Each person may submit one report only. Choose your weirdest, most compelling correlation.

  • Report Requirements

    Your submission must include:

    • The two variables and their data sources
    • Evidence of correlation (visuals and statistics encouraged)
    • Explanation of your visualizations
    • A creative reason for why the correlation might exist
  • Acceptable Data Sources

    Use publicly available datasets (Kaggle, government portals, APIs, etc.) or document your custom sources clearly for verification.

  • Submission Format

    Include the following:

    • Your name
    • Title of your analysis
    • Your complete report or notebook
    • All visualizations and documented sources

    Any format is acceptable (Jupyter Notebook, RMarkdown, PDF, Word, etc.).

Judging Criteria

Creativity

Is the correlation unexpected or clever?

Clarity

Is the analysis easy to follow and understand?

Evidence

Do the visuals support the narrative? Is the story of the data clear?

Example

For inspiration, check out an old reel that compares Travis Kelce's game stats to the number of Taylor Swift fans in the area. Your submission should be more comprehensive—but just as creative.

View Example on Instagram

Submit Your Entry