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Probability

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Solution: ‘Which Forecasts Are True?’

October 26, 2016

Aside from potential clues gleaned from a fluke result, it would take hundreds of U.S. presidential elections to definitely conclude that one election forecasting model is superior to another.

How Can We Tell Which Forecasts Are True?

October 13, 2016

Presidential election forecasts are historically successful and appear to be highly precise. Yet they’re often contradictory. What would it take to trust them?

Solution: ‘A Drunkard’s Walk in Manhattan’

September 7, 2016

City blocks help illustrate why walking randomly tends to take you away from your starting point.

A Drunkard’s Walk in Manhattan

August 18, 2016

Why is it that when you walk randomly, the more you walk, the farther you get from your starting point?

Solution: ‘A Random Place at the Table’

May 26, 2016

Try these shortcuts for solving problems that seem to require a lengthy calculation.

Why Sleeping Beauty Is Lost in Time

March 31, 2016

The famous Sleeping Beauty problem has divided probability theorists, decision theorists and philosophers for over 15 years. Puzzle columnist Pradeep Mutalik claims to have discovered the source of confusion.

Solution: ‘Sleeping Beauty’s Dilemma’

January 29, 2016

The solution to this month’s puzzle gets to the bottom of the famously ambiguous Sleeping Beauty probability problem.

Sleeping Beauty’s Necker Cube Dilemma

January 14, 2016

Like a visually ambiguous Necker cube, the famous Sleeping Beauty problem can be perceived in two seemingly valid ways.

Solution: ‘The Road Less Traveled’

September 25, 2015

The solution to this month’s puzzle uses both mathematics and psychology to explain trouble with choosing the fastest route.

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