Confusing Odds with Probability.

[slickpoppa]

In this forum and many other forums I consistently see people using the term odds like it means probability and vice versa.

So for anyone who is unaware:

Odds is written as the number of times an event will not happen per each time that it will happen. For example, the odds of a coin coming up heads is 1:1. The odds of someone guessing a number between 1 and 5 is 4:1.

Probability on the other hand is the fraction of times an event will occur on average. So the probability of a coin coming up heads is 1/2. The probability of someone guessing a number between 1 and 5 is 1/5.

[MagikKid]

Hey Slick,

I am new to the forums and am not used to writing about probability and odds although I do understand them. I am one of the culprits of writing a probability like it is an odd (you are probably aware of this). Some of these topics can be confusing enough without this error. I attempted to edit my last post but time had expired. I will do better next time. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

Thank you for writing this post!

Magik