270,000 to one......

As of the 23rd May 2022 this website is archived and will receive no further updates.

understandinguncertainty.org was produced by the Winton programme for the public understanding of risk based in the Statistical Laboratory in the University of Cambridge. The aim was to help improve the way that uncertainty and risk are discussed in society, and show how probability and statistics can be both useful and entertaining.

Many of the animations were produced using Flash and will no longer work.

One day I was sitting at my dining room table trying to finish The Daily Telegraph Cryptic Crossword. My daughter and her partner were in the room. I needed to find a 6-letter word H-D--- and I reached for my Chambers Crossword Completer which contains over 270,000 words. I had almost found the H-D--- section when my daughter gave a loud, unexpected hiccup. I called her to the table with the words 'Look, I am not moving my finger. Come and see this'. You have guessed it of course. My finger was on the word Hiccup.
Total votes: 232
Date submitted:Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:35:21 +0000Coincidence ID:4642