An Elementary Introduction to the Theory of Probability

2014 Reprint of 1961 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition. Not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This introduction to probability theory and its applications differs from most texts in that it uses basic probability concepts to solve commonplace problems that would normally be handled by statistical methods. Numerous examples deal primarily with industrial and military problems. This book is suitable for high school levels and up. After explaining in simple terms the meaning of the concept of probability and the means by which an event is declared to be in practice, impossible, the authors take up the processes involved in the calculation of probabilities. They survey the rules for addition and multiplication of probabilities, the concept of conditional probability, the formula for total probability, Bayes's formula, Bernoulli's scheme and theorem, the concepts of random variables, insufficiency of the mean value for the characterization of a random variable, methods of measuring the variance of a random variable, theorems on the standard deviation, the Chebyshev inequality, normal laws of distribution, distribution curves, properties of normal distribution curves, and related topics. The book is unique in that, while there are several high school and college textbooks available on this subject, there is no other popular treatment for the layman that contains quite the same material presented with the same degree of clarity and authenticity. Anyone who desires a fundamental grasp of this increasingly important subject cannot do better than to start with this book.