Senior probabilists from around the world with widely differing specialities gave their visions of the state of their specialty, why they think it is important, and how they think it will develop in the new millenium. The volume includes papers given at a symposium at Columbia University in 1995, but papers from others not at the meeting were added to broaden the coverage of areas. All papers were refereed.

This book of problems is designed to challenge students learning probability. Each chapter is divided into three parts: Problems, Hints, and Solutions. All Problems sections include expository material, making the book self-contained. Definitions and statements of important results are interlaced with relevant problems. The only prerequisite is basic algebra and calculus.

"What are the odds against winning the Lotto, The Weakest Link, or Who Wants to be a Millionaire? The answer lies in the science of probability, yet many of us are unaware of how this science works. Every day, people make judgements on a wide variety of situations where chance plays a role, including buying insurance, betting on horse-racing, following medical advice - even carrying an umbrella. In Taking Chances, John Haigh guides the reader round common pitfalls, demonstrates how to make better-informed decisions, and shows where the odds can be unexpectedly in your favour. This new edition has been fully updated, and includes information on top television shows, plus a new chapter on Probability for Lawyers."--BOOK JACKET.

This introduction can be used, at the beginning graduate level, for a one-semester course on probability theory or for self-direction without benefit of a formal course; the measure theory needed is developed in the text. It will also be useful for students and teachers in related areas such as finance theory, electrical engineering, and operations research. The text covers the essentials in a directed and lean way with 28 short chapters, and assumes only an undergraduate background in mathematics. Readers are taken right up to a knowledge of the basics of Martingale Theory, and the interested student will be ready to continue with the study of more advanced topics, such as Brownian Motion and Ito Calculus, or Statistical Inference.

This classroom-tested textbook is an introduction to probability theory, with the right balance between mathematical precision, probabilistic intuition, and concrete applications. Introduction to Probability covers the material precisely, while avoiding excessive technical details. After introducing the basic vocabulary of randomness, including events, probabilities, and random variables, the text offers the reader a first glimpse of the major theorems of the subject: the law of large numbers and the central limit theorem. The important probability distributions are introduced organically as they arise from applications. The discrete and continuous sides of probability are treated together to emphasize their similarities. Intended for students with a calculus background, the text teaches not only the nuts and bolts of probability theory and how to solve specific problems, but also why the methods of solution work.

An intuitive, yet precise introduction to probability theory, stochastic processes, statistical inference, and probabilistic models used in science, engineering, economics, and related fields. This is the currently used textbook for an introductory probability course at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, attended by a large number of undergraduate and graduate students, and for a leading online class on the subject. The book covers the fundamentals of probability theory (probabilistic models, discrete and continuous random variables, multiple random variables, and limit theorems), which are typically part of a first course on the subject. It also contains a number of more advanced topics, including transforms, sums of random variables, a fairly detailed introduction to Bernoulli, Poisson, and Markov processes, Bayesian inference, and an introduction to classical statistics. The book strikes a balance between simplicity in exposition and sophistication in analytical reasoning. Some of the more mathematically rigorous analysis is explained intuitively in the main text, and then developed in detail (at the level of advanced calculus) in the numerous solved theoretical problems.

In June 2010, a conference, Probability Approximations and Beyond, was held at the National University of Singapore (NUS), in honor of pioneering mathematician Louis Chen. Chen made the first of several seminal contributions to the theory and application of Stein’s method. One of his most important contributions has been to turn Stein’s concentration inequality idea into an effective tool for providing error bounds for the normal approximation in many settings, and in particular for sums of random variables exhibiting only local dependence. This conference attracted a large audience that came to pay homage to Chen and to hear presentations by colleagues who have worked with him in special ways over the past 40+ years. The papers in this volume attest to how Louis Chen’s cutting-edge ideas influenced and continue to influence such areas as molecular biology and computer science. He has developed applications of his work on Poisson approximation to problems of signal detection in computational biology. The original papers contained in this book provide historical context for Chen’s work alongside commentary on some of his major contributions by noteworthy statisticians and mathematicians working today.

Developed from celebrated Harvard statistics lectures, Introduction to Probability provides essential language and tools for understanding statistics, randomness, and uncertainty. The book explores a wide variety of applications and examples, ranging from coincidences and paradoxes to Google PageRank and Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC). Additional application areas explored include genetics, medicine, computer science, and information theory. The print book version includes a code that provides free access to an eBook version. The authors present the material in an accessible style and motivate concepts using real-world examples. Throughout, they use stories to uncover connections between the fundamental distributions in statistics and conditioning to reduce complicated problems to manageable pieces. The book includes many intuitive explanations, diagrams, and practice problems. Each chapter ends with a section showing how to perform relevant simulations and calculations in R, a free statistical software environment.

Now available in a fully revised and updated second edition, this well established textbook provides a straightforward introduction to the theory of probability. The presentation is entertaining without any sacrifice of rigour; important notions are covered with the clarity that the subject demands. Topics covered include conditional probability, independence, discrete and continuous random variables, basic combinatorics, generating functions and limit theorems, and an introduction to Markov chains. The text is accessible to undergraduate students and provides numerous worked examples and exercises to help build the important skills necessary for problem solving.

Coupling is a general method of establishing properties of random variables and processes through a joint construction on a common probability space. This method has relevance to all areas of probabilistic inquiry including quantum physics, self-similarity, relativity, and queueing theory. In addition to providing new developments in coupling, this book also includes self-contained treatments of Markov chains, stationarity, regeneration, perfect simulation, and quasi-stationarity.