100%

The chance of an unlikely event. Do you feel lucky?

0.0000057%

Powerball Jackpot

Winning the Powerball Lottery

The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are approximately 1 in 175 million. You're more likely to be struck by lightning 10 times in your lifetime.

99%

False Positive Risk

Medical Test False Positive

If a disease affects 1 in 1000 people and a test is 99% accurate, a positive result only means ~9% chance you actually have it. Most positive results are false alarms.

0.000009%

Per Flight

Plane Crash Risk

Your chance of dying in a plane crash is about 1 in 11 million per flight. You're 100 times more likely to die in a car accident.

0.00027%

Per Year

Lightning Strike in USA

Your annual odds of being struck by lightning are about 1 in 375,000. Most people struck survive, but 10% are fatal.

Myth Busters

MYTH

Gambler's Fallacy

If a coin landed heads 5 times in a row, tails is "due" to come up.

REALITY

Independent Events

Each flip has 50/50 odds. History doesn't influence future flips.

MYTH

Base Rate Neglect

A person looks suspicious, so they're probably guilty.

REALITY

Prior Probability Matters

You must consider how common guilt is in the base population.

Visualizing 1 in 1000

Can you find the one highlighted person among 1000?

One of these 1000 people is highlighted. Can you spot them?

Your Probability Calculator

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