Sarcasm

[altenbach]

---

James W wrote: 

Statistically (in the UK at least if I'm rememering correctly) the odds are slightly higher of "tails" than "heads" due to the slight increase in the mass of metal used!

---

Yes, a coin is definitely out. It's not just the difference in mass distribution of the two sides. Don't forget the difference in aerodynamics. The face is slighly bulging, leading to a lower pressure, and thus to a lift towards that side (Effect named after Daniel Bernoulli). The tail side gives somewhat more turbulent surface flow.

If we know the exact coin used (including all scratches and wear), we could do computer modeling to correct for the non-ideality.

However, the Bernoulli Family is big (and from my hometown), so my algorithm used a Bernoulli distribution named after Jacob Bernoulli with one element and a probability of 0.5. 😄

[Ben]

---

altenbach wrote:

...ideality.

However, the Bernoulli Family is big (and from my hometown), so my algorithm used a Bernoulli distribution named after Jacob Bernoulli with one element and a probability of 0.5. 😄

---

So that is where you are from! I watched a documentary on the family which was part of the series "The Story of Math" (if I remeber correctly). The documentary made it look beutiful*.

Ben

* No sarcasm invloved in this posting.

Message Edited by Ben on 06-10-2010 09:43 AM