Same car

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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.

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I used to live in north Wales. And my eldest son lived in Dublin. Aside from his wife and himself, his greatest love was his car, a black German motor with a personalised number plate. He occasionally would come over to do some work in England and if he had the time he would drop in for a drink and a chat. One day I was walkng to the pub and saw a black German motor car with a familiar number plate coming up the road. This surprised me as he hadn't told me he was coming over, and moreover he had driven right past my house - and me - without stopping.I called him on the phone immediately and asked what he was doing. Why, he answered, I'm at home working. No you're not, I replied, I've just seen you motoring up my road! Impossible, he retorted, I'm looking at my car parked here on the drive. Well that's weird, I carried on, your car with reg P33PMD has just gone up the hill in the direction of Mold. But dad, he said, my car number is P13PMD. Similar car, similar (VERY similar) number, right place right time. I never saw that other car again
Total votes: 176
Date submitted:Thu, 22 Jul 2021 17:28:17 +0000Coincidence ID:11449