Struck by Lightning
The Curious World of Probabilities
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Listen as author Jeffrey S. Rosenthal discusses the background to Struck by Lightning in this series of exclusive videos.
- You’re involved in a fierce poker
game. What’s your opponent’s next
move?
- You’re travelling to a foreign
country.
Are you going to be caught in a
terrorist attack?
- You’re about to pull the arm on a
slot machine. Are you more likely to
hit the jackpot or to catch the flu from the
last gambler’s unwashed hands?
Randomness, uncertainty and probability are everywhere, and
while no one can predict uncertain events with certainty, we can at least
understand uncertainty itself. In this entertaining look at the world of
probabilities, Jeffrey Rosenthal, an improbably talented math professor,
musician and improvisational comedian, explains the mechanics of randomness and
teaches us how to develop an informed perspective on probability.
From lotteries to casinos, insurance rates to crime rates, game
shows to airline crashes, cancer to SARS, Struck by Lightning deconstructs
the odds and oddities of chance in an understandable, relevant and irreverent
exploration.
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Author Extras
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Critical Praise for
Struck by Lightning
"Read Struck by Lightning and you will read a book by your favourite professor, the one who made a difficult subject easy to understand by illustrating insights with practical examples from the world around us. In this highly entertaining book, Jeffrey Rosenthal reveals the mysteries of probability and statistics including those ubiquitous public opinion polls and explains mathematical reasoning in ways we can apply in our daily lives--a rare feat. I guarantee your chances of enjoying this book are plus or minus 5 per cent at least 19 times out of 20."
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Michael Adams, President of Environics and author of Fire and Ice: The United States, Canada, and the Myth of Converging Values
"Struck by Lightning should turn the academic [Jeffrey Rosenthal] into a media-darling. No doubt we'll be seeing him on future TV panels interpreting election polls…. If there's one thing this book proves, it's that Rosenthal is versatile and accessible."
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Ottawa Citizen
"Even for the math challenged among us, Rosenthal makes numbers understandable. He has written Probability Theory for Dummies, if you will, or a Canadian version of Freakonomics . . . He has likely got English majors lining up for his courses. Rosenthal's goal is to help us all 'make better choices and harness uncertainties for our own purposes.' He succeeds in spades . . . Rosenthal's style is highly readable . . . Numbers and logic and probability are not topics you'd think could be made lively or entertaining. But the probability that it can be done well by Rosenthal is pretty high."
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Winnipeg Free Press
"Odds are you'll keep reading. ... [Rosenthal] shows how an understanding of probabilities is important to everyday life, from deciding whether to take a flight or buy a lottery ticket to understanding poll results and figuring out how scared to be of increased crime. Writing in funny, easily understandable language aimed at non-mathematicians, he shows how understanding the odds can give us a better idea of how the world works, and help us make better decisions about our lives ...clear even to people who haven't cracked a math book since high school."
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The Globe and Mail
"Odds are you'll like this Lightning strike. . . . Amaze your friends, confound your rivals. Buy Struck by Lightning and have some fun."
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Calgary Sun
"Rosenthal's mathematical look at life's seemingly random occurrences is both refreshing and detailed. He advocates using educated decisions and a more pragmatic approach to problem solving, and he does it with a punchy, quick-witted writing style ...Rosenthal succeeds in bringing mathematical theory to the masses, making it funny ... and highly relevant."
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Quill & Quire
"Like Freakonomics, Struck by Lightning attacks conventional wisdom. Too many times, we make decisions based on prevailing assumptions or anecdotal evidence when a proper analysis of the numbers would give us a different viewpoint and therefore, a competitive advantage. To prove that things aren't always as they seem, Rosenthal presents a few brainteasers that challenge your intuition. ... Rosenthal applies the laws of probabilities to games such as roulette, poker and blackjack and clearly distinguishes between smart bets and stupid ones. ... When applied to business, Rosenthal's book provides an insight into careful decision-making that puts facts ahead of emotions. It's often a smarter bet to invest in a book that gives you new knowledge over one filled with simple old rules."
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Mark Sutcliffe, Ottawa Citizen Business section
Reader Reviews from First Look
Even if you spent years of school hating math, you're bound to find it much more interesting when it's applied to poker and lotteries, the odds of bumping into someone you know far away from home, or in quelling your fears over crime. Rosenthal smoothly soothes some of our everyday fears without taking the magic out of life's little oddities. Definitely a fun - not to mention useful - read.
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Lisa (Newmarket, ON)
Even if you spent years of school hating math, you're bound to find it much more interesting when it's applied to poker and lotteries, the odds of bumping into someone you know far away from home, or in quelling your fears over crime. Rosenthal smoothly soothes some of our everyday fears without taking the magic out of life's little oddities. Definitely a fun - not to mention useful - read.
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Lisa (Newmarket, ON)
Struck by Lightning, The Curious World of Probabilities is a good read. Every child is cautioned about being struck by lightning and the worry lingers when skies darken and thunder claps. Jeffrey S. Rosenthal takes the fear out of everyday risk taking. He encourages us to make our own decisions, sometimes tough decisions, about the many things that influence daily life— weather, lotteries, surveys, health and computer viruses, plane crashes—everything that touches randomness.
Struck by Lightning will be a good read for university students taking their first Stats course. In Mickey Splane style, the light-hearted stories change our perception of luck and skill, chance and romance. We want to beat the bank, to risk the cards, to be in the game. It's ok to hope for the big one, writes Rosenthal, but take a look at important probabilities.
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Eileen (Vancouver, BC)
This book was so interesting because it made me think in a whole new way!
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Suzi (Listowel, ON)
This book is an enjoyable journey into math and statistics that is both enlightening and entertaining. The book is written in an easy-to-understand manner, with excellent real-life examples of everyday statistics. The author obviously has a great passion for his work and brings a difficult subject down to an every-person level. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
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J. David (Toronto, ON)
This book is very amusing and full of interesting probabilities. Even though it is written by a math Professor it is very easy to understand the different concepts and ideas because the author explains things very well. It is a very well written piece of non-fiction that makes one think about the random side of life.
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Daymara (Dunchurch, ON)
A fascinating read! Rosenthal delights with his descriptions of how likelihood's can be used to make predictions. The explanations are written in a very accessible and enlightening way. This is a useful book for anyone who makes decisions and an entertaining book for anyone who is interested in probabilities of outcomes. Highly recommended.
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Alanna (Toronto, ON)
Struck By Lightning does a fantastic job of making probability accessible to non-math geeks. This would have been a great one to accompany my statistics course in university! While at times Rosenthal seems to get a little too caught up in explaining all the numbers and equations, this book is highly readable and enjoyable. I especially enjoyed the little "final exam" at the end!
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Maria (Toronto, ON)
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