If you would like to find out the odds of a particular event happening, you will need to calculate its probability value. The study of statistics does incorporate the theory of probability, which is how many people are trying to figure out the odds of them winning the lottery or to try and calculate the success rate of pretty much every event that has an outcome. In today’s article, we will explore the most famous examples of unlikely circumstances and the chance of you going through them!
Given that more people interact with vending machines than with sharks, the chances of a person being fatally wounded by a soda-dispensing machine are much bigger than being eaten by a shark. If we are to talk numbers, the odds of being killed by a shark are 1 in 250,000,000, while having a fatal encounter with a vending machine has odds of 1 in 112,000,000. Avoiding shark-infested waters is a no-brainer; however, if you’ve ordered a can of Sprite and it gets stuck, try to refrain from hitting the machine – it might hit you back!
Everybody knows that the majority of pregnancies worldwide produce a single child. On the other hand, there are cases where multiple children are born, and although more than one child is considered to be rare, a scientific estimation has calculated the different odds for nearly all of them! For example, 1 in every 250 pregnancies is said to result in twins; however, if we are talking about identical twins, then the odds rise to 1 to 350. Birthing triplets is a 1 in a 10,000 chance, but having identical ones raises those odds to 1 in 1,000,000! Regular quadruplets have a 1 in 700,000 chance, while identical ones increase the odds to 1 to 15,000,000!
Out of all the weird and interesting things that can happen to a person, being canonised as a saint is definitely one of the rarest ones. The statistics here are interesting indeed because this estimation takes into consideration all of the people who have ever lived on Earth, which are calculated to be approximately 107 billion!
With that factor established, it is calculated that the odds of a person becoming a saint (via a Vatican Roman Catholic ritual) is said to be 1 in 20,000,000. While this honour is considered one of the most remarkable ones in the history of the Christian religion, it can’t be enjoyed by any living candidate, as the title is only given to a person after they have passed away. Ouch.
It has been calculated that there is a 1 to 220 chance of a published author being placed in the “best seller” list of the famous New York Times. The reason for those favourable odds, is that the current global trend is that fewer people follow the “path of the quill”, which means that as much of a competition there is, the number of people who decide to write a book today is decreasing. Who knows, maybe if you choose to publish a book, you might find yourself on New York Times’ best sellers list!
Now this a doozie, but definitely an interesting one. To give you the answer first, the odds of you existing are 1 to 102,685,000! As you can see, this number is quite special, as it’s a 10 with nearly three million zeroes behind it. The odds of every human being conceived and existing are astronomically low, and with a good reason. Not only one, but two people must have gone through an impressive number of events in order to end up together and create a child. The fact that you’re here already makes you special, hooray!
Coincidentally, the odds of being struck by lightning are the same as being hit by a meteor – 1 to 700,000. On the other hand, there is a popular saying that “a lightning never hits two times in the same spot”, but is it true? Scientists have calculated the probability of lightning hitting two times in the same place and have found out that this event is possible; however, the odds of that happening are 1 to 9,000,000. Now that’s one shocker you might not see coming!
The probability statistics regarding lottery wins are something that both mathematicians and regular people study rigorously today — especially if they are playing the lottery. Naturally, different lotteries will have different probabilities, but the odds of winning the highest amount of money is approximately 1 in 12,000,000. There are recorded cases where the same person has managed to win the same lottery twice – the odds of which rise to 1 in 2,500,000,000! Statistically speaking, a regular person has nearly a 1,000 times better chance of becoming an astronaut, getting hit by a meteor, and then getting canonised by the Roman Catholic Church, rather than win the lottery twice!
The truth is that nearly everything can be quantified and put into a probability perspective. While some examples may look a bit silly, the fact that they can be calculated makes them quite real — although the odds might be ridiculously large or small. With that being said, we’ve prepared for you a few interesting events, and what is their rate of occurrence: – 1 in 20,000 — finding a pearl inside of an oyster – 1 in 3,000 — that a child is born with teeth – 1 in 10,000 — for finding a four-leaf clover – 1 in 7 — that an adult next to you can’t read – 1 in 1,000 — to crack open an egg that has a double yolk
In order to be capable of calculating the odds of a specific event, a person needs to have all of the information regarding every single aspect of the particular occurrence. In the case of finding out the odds of throwing and landing a specific number with a six-sided die, the chances of hitting that are 1 to 6; however, you already know how many sides a simple dice cube has.
On the other hand, discovering the probability of a shark attack definitely requires much more research before making a proper calculation. Bear in mind that all of the odds listed above can be applied only if specific conditions are previously met; for example, if a person is not pursuing any type of an acting career, the chances of them receiving an Oscar in the future will be practically zero.
As long as all of the information regarding a specific event is known, its occurrence chances can be calculated. On the other hand, it is essential to mention that although the theory of odds and probability are proven mathematically, the laws of uncertainty will always dictate that there is a chance that something might not happen, even if it had met the quota in its probability statistics. The bottom line is that even the most educated mathematicians humour themselves with the statement, “regardless of the odds, life always operates on a 50/50 basis – something will either happen or not”.
Do you think there is a chance for lightning to strike twice in the same place? What are the odds of that? Find that out and more from our entertaining read!
The study of statistics does incorporate the theory of probability, which is how many people are trying to figure out the odds of them winning the lottery or to try and calculate the success rate of pretty much every event that has an outcome.
The odds of being killed by a shark are 1 in 250,000,000, while having a fatal encounter with a vending machine has odds of 1 in 112,000,000.
1 in every 250 pregnancies is said to result in twins; however, if we are talking about identical twins, then the odds rise to 1 to 350. Birthing triplets is a 1 in a 10,000 chance, but having identical ones raises those odds to 1 in 1,000,000! Regular quadruplets have a 1 in 700,000 chance, while identical ones increase the odds to 1 to 15,000,000!
It is calculated that the odds of a person becoming a saint (via a Vatican Roman Catholic ritual) is said to be 1 in 20,000,000.
It has been calculated that there is a 1 to 220 chance of a published author being placed in the “best seller” list of the famous New York Times.
The odds of you existing are 1 to 102,685,000! As you can see, this number is quite special, as it’s a 10 with nearly three million zeroes behind it
Coincidentally, the odds of being struck by lightning are the same as being hit by a meteor – 1 to 700,000.
The odds of winning the highest amount of money is approximately 1 in 12,000,000. The odds of which rise to 1 in 2,500,000,000! Statistically speaking, a regular person has nearly a 1,000 times better chance of becoming an astronaut, getting hit by a meteor, and then getting canonised by the Roman Catholic Church, rather than win the lottery twice!
The odds of throwing and landing a specific number with a six-sided die, the chances of hitting that are 1 to 6.
Bear in mind that all of the odds listed above can be applied only if specific conditions are previously met.
It is essential to mention that although the theory of odds and probability are proven mathematically.
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