What is Stochastic Overflow? | Carl Sagan

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Stochastic overflow, as discussed by Carl Sagan in "The Demon-Haunted World," refers to a theoretical phenomenon where an event, despite being highly improbable, could occur given enough time. Sagan illustrates this concept with the example of a car potentially passing through a wall and appearing on the street, contingent on conditions that exceed the universe's age. He emphasizes that while the average waiting time for such an event is vastly longer than the universe's existence, it remains a possibility. This idea highlights the intersection of probability and physics in understanding seemingly impossible scenarios. Overall, stochastic overflow serves as a thought experiment about the limits of chance and the nature of reality.
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In his book "The Demon-Haunted World" Carl Sagan talks about this, I wonder what kind of physics phenom is that.

t.i.a.
 
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Can you provide some context in which that term was used?
 
In the book, he was talking about the possibility that a car can travel by itself through a wall an the appear on the street , and though this is possible, it requires a stochastic overflow condition, which is larger the age of the universe.
 
chapter 17 : The average waiting time per stochastic ooze is much longer than the age of the Universe since the Big Bang. But, however improbable, in principle it might
happen tomorrow.
 

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