You and I play a game involving successive throws of a fair coin. Suppose I pick HH and you pick TH. The coin is thrown repeatedly until we see either two heads in a row (I win) or a tail followed by. . . .
Explore these X-dice with numbers other than 1 to 6 on their faces. Which one is best?
In this follow-up to the problem Odds and Evens, we invite you to analyse a probability situation in order to find the general solution for a fair game.
When two closely matched teams play each other, what is the most likely result?
Can you work out the probability of winning the Mathsland National Lottery?
If everyone in your class picked a number from 1 to 225, do you think any two people would pick the same number?
Imagine a room full of people who keep flipping coins until they get a tail. Will anyone get six heads in a row?
Think that a coin toss is 50-50 heads or tails? Read on to appreciate the ever-changing and random nature of the world in which we live.
Can you work out which spinners were used to generate the frequency charts?
A gambler bets half the money in his pocket on the toss of a coin, winning an equal amount for a head and losing his money if the result is a tail. After 2n plays he has won exactly n times. Has. . . .
By tossing a coin one of three princes is chosen to be the next King of Randomia. Does each prince have an equal chance of taking the throne?
Calculate probabilities associated with the Derren Brown coin scam in which he flipped 10 heads in a row.
This article, for students and teachers, is mainly about probability, the mathematical way of looking at random chance.
A simple spinner that is equally likely to land on Red or Black. Useful if tossing a coin, dropping it, and rummaging about on the floor have lost their appeal. Needs a modern browser; if IE then at. . . .
Simple models which help us to investigate how epidemics grow and die out.
All you need for this game is a pack of cards. While you play the game, think about strategies that will increase your chances of winning.
A maths-based Football World Cup simulation for teachers and students to use.
Edward Wallace based his A Level Statistics Project on The Mean Game. Each picks 2 numbers. The winner is the player who picks a number closest to the mean of all the numbers picked.
How is the length of time between the birth of an animal and the birth of its great great ... great grandparent distributed?
Can you beat Piggy in this simple dice game? Can you figure out Piggy's strategy, and is there a better one?
A counter is placed in the bottom right hand corner of a grid. You toss a coin and move the star according to the following rules: ... What is the probability that you end up in the top left-hand. . . .
Is the regularity shown in this encoded message noise or structure?