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Emily Spriggs

Maths Skills & Insight Session: Probability Paradoxes


 

Date: Thursday 22nd June 2023 Time: 12:45-13:30 BST Location: Online

 

About the Skills & Insight Session

The Unviersity of Surrey are hosting a mathematics skills & insight session titled 'Probability Paradoxes'. The session will be led by Dr Audrey Kueh who will discuss the following 3 maths problems:


1. There are three boxes. One box has 2 gold coins, one box has 2 silver coins and one box has a gold coin and a silver coin. A box is chosen at random, and one of the two coins in that box is removed at random. Given the removed coin is gold, what is the probability that the other coin in the chosen box is gold?


2. Suppose you’re on a game show, and you’re given the choice of three doors: Behind one door is a car; behind the others, goats. You pick a door, say No. 1. The host then selects one of the doors with a goat from the remaining two doors, say No. 2, and shows you the goat behind that door. He then says to you, “Do you want to pick door No. 3?” Is it to your advantage to switch your choice?


3. Jørgen wants a pet iguana. Only 1% of the population is allergic, but he takes a test to be sure. The test has an error rate of 10%: 90% of allergic people who take the test return a true positive result, whereas 10% of non-allergic people who take the test return a false positive result. Given he tests positive, what is the probability that he is actually allergic?


Who should attend this session?

This session is suitable for students in IB1 & IB2 who have an interest in studying Maths or other related disciplines at university, however anyone is welcome to attend.


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