In February 2016 the LIGO team announced the detection of gravitational
waves (GW) created by the merger of two black holes. In addition
to confirming a major prediction of general relativity, successful
GW detection would provide a powerful new tool for astrophysics.
Given their evident importance, the LIGO results and the methods
which led to them deserve independent critical analysis. This talk
will present the results of one such study in a manner suitable for
non-specialists.