[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you for your reply!

me: It is much easier to predict the result from the toss of a single coin than it is to predict the result from tossing a pocketful of change.

you: What do you mean here? Easier or more accurate? They are both equally easy to predict.

I mean easier.

If you are tossing a single coin, the results can be heads, tails, or sitting on its edge.

But if you have a pocketful of change, the number of possibilites per coin does not change - but you must first count the number of coins and then figure all possible permutations according to geometry as they may fall, i.e. the coins may fall in a straight line, in bunches or stacked, etc.

[Doctor Stochastic]

...the coins may fall in a straight line, in bunches or stacked...

And a single coin may roll under a dresser, fall in a drain, be flattened by a train. This makes little difference in the difficulty of computation.

I don't think it's a very good example as it doesn't generalize well. For example, it's nearly impossible to predict the weather for next July 7, but the weather averaged over all July is fairly accurate. Likewise, I cannot predict a single roll of a roulette wheel; but I can predict the outcome of many throws.