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wheels1888
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I have a presentation to give on the least squares method this week, and am finding the least squares method very intuitive with the exception of one thing: why is the square of the offset used, as opposed to the absolute value? I did a bit of searching, but could not find a detailed answer.
Wolfram says this:
I can't quite visualize what this is saying (wouldn't it be continuous if the absolute values were used?)... I was wondering if someone could elaborate on this? Sorry if this is a vague question.
Thanks
Wolfram says this:
The sum of the squares of the offsets is used instead of the offset absolute values because this allows the residuals to be treated as a continuous differentiable quantity. However, because squares of the offsets are used, outlying points can have a disproportionate effect on the fit, a property which may or may not be desirable depending on the problem at hand.
I can't quite visualize what this is saying (wouldn't it be continuous if the absolute values were used?)... I was wondering if someone could elaborate on this? Sorry if this is a vague question.
Thanks