Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future
One of the hardest questions that mathematics teachers have to answer is "Why?" Schoolroom sums are crucial in learning the awesome power of mathematics, but they are often a world away from how the knowledge is applied and where it came from.  Inside Mathematics: Probability & Statistics is there to fill that gap.

What are the chances of that? Mathematics can solve that mystery for you using a set of ideas that grew out of an aristocratic gambler’s bafflement at betting on complex dice games. In stepped the mathematical giants of Pierre de Fermat and Blaise Pascal, who worked together to create what is now called probability theory. Gamblers need not rejoice in this powerful theory; it shows that the casino always wins in the end. The ideas of probability have since found many better uses elsewhere. For example, they are at work in the mathematics that describes the quantum world and drives the push for artificial intelligence. The mathematics of chance is involved in understanding systems where myriad data points combine. Statistics is the branch of mathematics that wrangles that data and tames it into meaningful knowledge. It then allows us to get ever better at modeling complex phenomena, from the formation of stars and the path of a hurricane to the rise and fall of the markets.

Inside Mathematics: Probability & Statistics introduces the reader to these awesome mathematical powers by telling the stories of who figured them out. They include a cavalry officer hoping to reduce injuries from horse kicks, Charles Darwin’s cousin who discovered that we make the best guesses when we work together, and computers that are built to program themselves. Written to engage and enthuse young people, Inside Mathematics shows readers how the ideas of long-dead geniuses have ended up in their homework assignments.

  • Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future changes the question from “Why?” to “What’s next?”
  • Arranged chronologically to show how ideas in mathematics evolved.
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Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future
One of the hardest questions that mathematics teachers have to answer is "Why?" Schoolroom sums are crucial in learning the awesome power of mathematics, but they are often a world away from how the knowledge is applied and where it came from.  Inside Mathematics: Probability & Statistics is there to fill that gap.

What are the chances of that? Mathematics can solve that mystery for you using a set of ideas that grew out of an aristocratic gambler’s bafflement at betting on complex dice games. In stepped the mathematical giants of Pierre de Fermat and Blaise Pascal, who worked together to create what is now called probability theory. Gamblers need not rejoice in this powerful theory; it shows that the casino always wins in the end. The ideas of probability have since found many better uses elsewhere. For example, they are at work in the mathematics that describes the quantum world and drives the push for artificial intelligence. The mathematics of chance is involved in understanding systems where myriad data points combine. Statistics is the branch of mathematics that wrangles that data and tames it into meaningful knowledge. It then allows us to get ever better at modeling complex phenomena, from the formation of stars and the path of a hurricane to the rise and fall of the markets.

Inside Mathematics: Probability & Statistics introduces the reader to these awesome mathematical powers by telling the stories of who figured them out. They include a cavalry officer hoping to reduce injuries from horse kicks, Charles Darwin’s cousin who discovered that we make the best guesses when we work together, and computers that are built to program themselves. Written to engage and enthuse young people, Inside Mathematics shows readers how the ideas of long-dead geniuses have ended up in their homework assignments.

  • Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future changes the question from “Why?” to “What’s next?”
  • Arranged chronologically to show how ideas in mathematics evolved.
19.95 In Stock
Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future

Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future

Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future

Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future

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Overview

One of the hardest questions that mathematics teachers have to answer is "Why?" Schoolroom sums are crucial in learning the awesome power of mathematics, but they are often a world away from how the knowledge is applied and where it came from.  Inside Mathematics: Probability & Statistics is there to fill that gap.

What are the chances of that? Mathematics can solve that mystery for you using a set of ideas that grew out of an aristocratic gambler’s bafflement at betting on complex dice games. In stepped the mathematical giants of Pierre de Fermat and Blaise Pascal, who worked together to create what is now called probability theory. Gamblers need not rejoice in this powerful theory; it shows that the casino always wins in the end. The ideas of probability have since found many better uses elsewhere. For example, they are at work in the mathematics that describes the quantum world and drives the push for artificial intelligence. The mathematics of chance is involved in understanding systems where myriad data points combine. Statistics is the branch of mathematics that wrangles that data and tames it into meaningful knowledge. It then allows us to get ever better at modeling complex phenomena, from the formation of stars and the path of a hurricane to the rise and fall of the markets.

Inside Mathematics: Probability & Statistics introduces the reader to these awesome mathematical powers by telling the stories of who figured them out. They include a cavalry officer hoping to reduce injuries from horse kicks, Charles Darwin’s cousin who discovered that we make the best guesses when we work together, and computers that are built to program themselves. Written to engage and enthuse young people, Inside Mathematics shows readers how the ideas of long-dead geniuses have ended up in their homework assignments.

  • Probability & Statistics: How Mathematics Can Predict the Future changes the question from “Why?” to “What’s next?”
  • Arranged chronologically to show how ideas in mathematics evolved.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781627951449
Publisher: Shelter Harbor Press
Publication date: 09/14/2021
Series: Inside Mathematics
Edition description: Illustrated
Pages: 184
Product dimensions: 7.50(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range: 13 - 18 Years

About the Author

Dr. Mike Goldsmith  is a science writer and former head of the U.K.'s National Physical Laboratory, where he specialized in astronomy and the science of sound. In his many nonfiction books for children, Mike engages with a wide range of topics, including mathematics, space exploration, time travel and the history of science. Mike received a PhD in astrophysics from Keele University in the U.K. He lives in Twickenham, London.


Tom Jackson is a science writer based in the United Kingdom. Tom specializes in recasting science and technology into lively historical narratives. After almost 20 years of writing, Tom has uncovered a wealth of stories that help create new ways to enjoy learning about science. He studied at the University of Bristol, and still lives in the city with his wife and three children.

Table of Contents

Introduction 6

Averages 10

Odds 14

Combinations and Permutations 20

What to Expect 28

Matters of Life and Death 32

How Long Will You Life? 34

The Shapes of Data 38

The Normal Distribution 46

Bayes' Amazing Theorem 52

The Needle of Chance 58

Seeing Statistics 64

Measures of Spread 68

Least Squares 74

Laplace's Demon 84

Error 90

The Average Human 96

Poisson's Distribution 100

Outliers 108

Randomness 112

Regression 118

Correlation 122

Skew 132

Non-Parametric Statistics 140

Compare and Contrast 146

Measuring Confidence 154

Tests and Trials 160

Fallacies 168

Who Makes Your Decisions? 176

Glossary 180

Index 182

Credits 184

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