Estimating the Heights of New Yorkers from Their Scuff Marks

Estimating the heights of New Yorkers from their scuff marks

I analyzed scuff marks on a concrete wall at the Smith–Ninth Streets station in Brooklyn to estimate commuter heights. By using a keypad as a scale and measuring pixel luminance, I mapped where shoes strike the wall. While the initial data suggested an average height, the wide variance revealed that leg angle significantly impacts the results, prompting a need for more complex Bayesian modeling.

"The distribution implies people who are impossibly tall."