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[return to "Ask HN: What scientific phenomenon do you wish someone would explain better?"]
1. partyb+r91[view] [source] 2020-04-27 07:30:13
>>qqqqqu+(OP)
Basic probability. How come when I flip a coin it is just as likely to come up heads or tails even if it has just been heads 5 times in a row?

I understand the physical properties of the coin make it so it is an independent event but if I were to run the experiment multiple times the number of times it would be heads after 5 heads would not be an even probability, it would be unlikely since 6 heads in a row is a rare event.

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2. Reraro+F91[view] [source] 2020-04-27 07:32:48
>>partyb+r91
Yeah, but 5 heads followed by 1 tail is also a rare event. Basically, after drawing 5 heads you have a choice between two rare events which are equally probable. The same after drawing anything else, not just 5 heads.
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