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Possibility and probability

Posted by Lotg on October 07, 2004

In Reply to: Possibility and probability posted by Ward on October 07, 2004

: : : HI,
: : : Can anyone out there tell me what does this phrase or saying mean...
: : : "Possibility and probability are two different things"
: : : OR
: : : "Probability and possibility are two different things"
: : : Thanks
: : : Abhishek

: : It's not a phrase I'm familiar with. I think it may refer to planning for the future.
: : It's possible but not probable that there will be an earthquake tomorrow. I'm not taking any precautions.
: : It's possible and probable that Mount St Helens will erupt in the future. I'll be taking my holidays somewhere else!

: In my useage, possible tends to establish two categories ......something is possible or it's not. Probable is used when there is a conceivable gradation or some measure of statistical certainty of the occurance of a particular event. (A good coin, when flipped, will produce heads and tails with a probablity of 50% of each)
: There can be a high probability of a certain thing happening -- this suggests a likelyhood of more than 50% that it will occur. Something must be possible to have a probability established for it. Impossible things have zero probability of happening.(A two headed coin will never show up tails -- it's impossible)

Impossible - possibly? Unless the 'supposed' two headed coin is thrown by my dodgy Uncle George.

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