From: Lee Daniel Crocker (lee@piclab.com)
Date: Fri Nov 01 2002 - 00:18:42 MST
> (Mike Lorrey <mlorrey@yahoo.com>):
> > Thanks, Mike, but this answer is incorrect. See the description of
> > the problem. If a *random* sampler reports five heads, the other
> > coinflips have a 50% chance of being heads. If a *biased* sampler
> > reports five heads, that's an entirely different issue.
>
> Depends on what the bias is. You originally said the bias was in
> selecting every other flip. This is not a bias, because the odds for
> any given flip is 50%. You are selecting which flips to use before you
> know any history, and you are selecting flips in an arbitrary manner.
>
> You might disagree with me. I suggest you run a real experiment before
> rejecting it.
Considering the other three of us who read the question understood
it enough to all get the right answer of about .66, I suggest you
come join us for some poker.
-- Lee Daniel Crocker <lee@piclab.com> <http://www.piclab.com/lee/> "All inventions or works of authorship original to me, herein and past, are placed irrevocably in the public domain, and may be used or modified for any purpose, without permission, attribution, or notification."--LDC
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