Probability question

[Stat Brother]

Honda only sold 3,000 Streams in the UK, approximately 10 years ago.

What are the chances of an identical one to ours being owned by the new people across the street?

 

[Colossal Squid]

I'd be surprised if it was Heart. Most commercial radio stations steer clear of the Beatles because the rights holders are still fiercely protective of their records.

The BBC have a blanket agreement allowing them to play as much Beatles as they like across all their mediums but they do pay for this. The likes of Heart I don't think have such a deal in place, which is why you very rarely hear the Beatles on the radio unless it's a BBC station, and even then it's once in a blue moon.

You may have found it on a digital or AM station devoted to "Gold" however

 

[Cian]

Honda only sold 3,000 Streams in the UK, approximately 10 years ago.

What are the chances of an identical one to ours being owned by the new people across the street?

Fiat sold FOUR of my model/colour combo in Ireland and one of the other two is in the same town (c.14000 people).

 

[Official Old Man]

It was Heart and here's why.
Firstly there is only one playlist compiled by computer that dictates what we want to listen to at any particular time. As explained before, some 'local' stations opt out of the national broadcast (Breakfast and Drive), but still play the music tracks dictated by the computer. Try it online at breakfast time by listening to a northern Heart station and have Heart Sussex on the radio. Same music but different ads and DJ (honestly, sounds same DJ but isn't). If on a long drive it is even better as a car radio auto tunes (RDS) to the local Heart so a song will 'skip' as the radio skips between stations.

 

[Gwylan]

I'd be surprised if it was Heart.

It was Heart and here's why.
.

Well, that's as clear as mud.

When I asked the question, I thought that they were two stations with different playlists. I'm aware that chart hits would feature on both but thought that a record that's nearly 50 years old would be unlikely to be played regularly.

Now, if the stations are running the same playlist, then the odds would be cut dramatically and if the play the same list in the same order, then there's nothing surprising about it. I'll never know though.

I was disappointed that when I visited the greengrocer in the Open Market, the radio wasn't playing Sultans of Swing, which was being played over the radio on both of my previous visits. I reckoned that wasn't so improbable if he played the same station, which had the same playlist, but it wasn't third time in a row - he didn't have the radio on today

 

[Frutos]

Fiat sold FOUR of my model/colour combo in Ireland and one of the other two is in the same town (c.14000 people).

Is that the grey one?

 

[Cian]

Is that the grey one?

Its anthracite.

 

[Official Old Man]

Gwylan.
Where are you and where did this happen?

 

[1066familyman]

I remember a very weird similar story from my youth that really freaked me out.

I pulled up outside my mates house in my Mk5 Ford Cortina with Lee Scratch Perry's - Time Boom X De Devil Dead - album playing on tape in my radio cassette. I'd just recorded it onto tape from the vinyl, and was taking it to my mates to play it. On ejecting the tape with this song playing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90rjG3-SJAY, the very same song continued to come out of my speakers whilst I had the tape in my hand! Very freaky on a misty dark Autumn night. I can still see that moment now It took me a little while to realise the car radio was mistuned to a French station and they were playing the very same tune at that very moment.

No idea what the probabilties of that happening were.

 

[Stat Brother]

Gwylan.
Where are you and where did this happen?

Liverpool!!

 

[Gwylan]

Gwylan.
Where are you and where did this happen?

I was in the Oxfam shop on London Road. I was looking for one specific item, which is why I didn't hear the next record

 

[Gwylan]

Gwylan.
Where are you and where did this happen?

I was in the Oxfam shop on London Road. I was looking for one specific item, which is why I didn't hear the next record

 

[Buzzer]

I was in the Oxfam shop on London Road. I was looking for one specific item, which is why I didn't hear the next record

Talking of probability and charity shops - It used to be the rule that you would find a copy of Frederick Forsyth's Day of the Jackal in every charity shop you could mention. Nowadays it's a Morcheeba 'Big Calm' CD and/or a Jamie Oliver cookbook.

 

[Gwylan]

Gwylan.
Where are you and where did this happen?

I was in the Oxfam shop on London Road. I was looking for one specific item, which is why I didn't hear the next record

 

[whitelion]

Where were you?

 

[Justice]

This is what is called chaos theory, I have studied this over the years and use it to make money as it can improve odds in certain casino games if you know what to look for.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

On a similar theme: what is the statistical probability, please, of turning on Heart FM at any given moment in time and finding Michael Buble playing?

In my case ... zero.

 

[Notters]

I'd be surprised if it was Heart. Most commercial radio stations steer clear of the Beatles because the rights holders are still fiercely protective of their records.

The BBC have a blanket agreement allowing them to play as much Beatles as they like across all their mediums but they do pay for this. The likes of Heart I don't think have such a deal in place, which is why you very rarely hear the Beatles on the radio unless it's a BBC station, and even then it's once in a blue moon.

You may have found it on a digital or AM station devoted to "Gold" however

Don't forget anything over fifty years old is fair game. (Though this doesn't include day tripper yet)