> Yes they matter, but in both my examples the odds were extremely against 
> you coming out ahead.

In the UK lottery at least, I think there's a 1 in 14 million chance of 
winning the top prize, which is usually several million pounds.

It could take you well over 14 million tries to win it, it could take you 
100 tries to win it, it could take only 1.  It's the fact that there is a 
finite chance that make people play, try asking all the hundreds of people 
who have won, I doubt any of them spent anywhere near 14 million pounds on 
lottery tickets, everyone believe they *could* be one of these people.

> Actually, I take that back.  Those are extremely favorable odds.  Now to 
> prove it, let's you and I play a few times.  I'll be the house...

Are you sure you really want to play, I mean there's a small but finite 
chance you'll have to give up everything you own, and then still be in huge 
debt for the rest of your life (assuming you're not a multi-millionaire 
already).

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>I recall that there was an accident here in town several years ago that was 
>also a wrong-place-wrong-time type also.  A lady jogger was killed when a 
>large branch from an old tree fell and crushed
> her.  She was found when a crew came to cut the branch up to haul it away. 
> I always wondered if she had been discovered earlier if she would have 
> lived...

Yesterday there was a tornado (f2) near Portland, Oregon,
an old lady out walking her bull mastif was blown 20 feet
into a cyclone fence and pinned there by the wind, with
her dog, for 10 or 20 seconds... I wonder what the chances
of such puns occuring would be.

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Tim Attwood wrote:
>> I recall that there was an accident here in town several years ago that was 
>> also a wrong-place-wrong-time type also.  A lady jogger was killed when a 
>> large branch from an old tree fell and crushed
>> her.  She was found when a crew came to cut the branch up to haul it away. 
>> I always wondered if she had been discovered earlier if she would have 
>> lived...
> 
> Yesterday there was a tornado (f2) near Portland, Oregon,
> an old lady out walking her bull mastif was blown 20 feet
> into a cyclone fence and pinned there by the wind, with
> her dog, for 10 or 20 seconds... I wonder what the chances
> of such puns occuring would be. 

Speaking of which, I was at work when someone came in and asked if we'd 
heard about the Tornado alert.

I (literally) laughed at him, thinking it was a joke.  Then I realized 
they'd done quite a few "tests" of the Emergency Broadcast System that 
morning, and maybe I should pay attention to the next one.

Vancouver (which is where the tornado actually was) hasn't had a tornado 
since 1976, so it was quite unexpected!

-- 
...Ben Chambers
www.pacificwebguy.com

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