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The Mathematics of Maybe: Introduction to Probability

The big picture

A chance is a number. It comes from counting.

Probability — the chapter on one screen
IdeaRememberExample
RandomThe next toss cannot be called. A whole run can be described.Coin toss before a match
0 to 1 scaleA chance is a number from 0 to 1. 0 is impossible. 1 is certain. The chances of all the outcomes of one draw add to 1.0.5 + 0.3 + 0.2 = 1
Observed chanceAn observed chance is a count over a whole. It is the outcome's trials over every trial made.12 heads of 20 = 0.6
SettlingMore tries steady the share. They never fully still it. Each try is blind to the ones before it.600 tosses settle near 0.5
Worked-out chanceCount the outcomes an event allows. Divide by all the outcomes that can happen. First check they are equally likely.Fair die: even number = 1/2
Two figuresReal rolls give one figure. The die's faces give another. With few rolls a gap is normal. It does not prove the die is unfair.5/15 against 1/6
PairsWrite the two actions as a table of pairs. Count the pairs an event holds. Divide by all the pairs.Two coins: HT, TH = 1/2
TreesOne stage per choice. Multiply along a path. The paths together add to exactly 1.1/2 × 1/2 = 1/4

Open Chapter 7, The Mathematics of Maybe, in your NCERT book. You now know both ways of counting a chance. You know the table and the tree too.

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This track

  1. 0 Start here
  2. 1 What random means
  3. 2 A scale from 0 to 1
  4. 3 Counting what happened
  5. 4 More tries, steadier
  6. 5 Counting what could happen
  7. 6 When the two disagree
  8. 7 Two things at once
  9. 8 A tree of results
  10. 9 The big picture
  11. 10 Track quiz

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