Discussion Overview
The discussion revolves around calculating the probability of a burglary given that both John and Mary have called. Participants explore the application of Bayes' Theorem and the dependencies between various events related to the scenario.
Discussion Character
- Mathematical reasoning, Technical explanation, Debate/contested
Main Points Raised
- One participant expresses confusion about applying Bayes' Theorem to find P(B | J & M) and mentions the independence of burglary from other events.
- Another participant suggests breaking down the problem using Bayes' Theorem and emphasizes the need to determine the independence of J and M, as well as J and M given A.
- A later reply confirms that J and M are independent of each other but dependent on A, raising the need for specific probabilities like P(J | M & A) and P(M | J & A).
- Participants discuss two cases regarding the dependencies of J and M on A, leading to different calculations for P(J & M | A) based on assumed relationships.
- There is a proposal that if no information about dependencies is provided, it might be assumed that J and M are independent given A, leading to a different probability calculation.
Areas of Agreement / Disagreement
Participants do not reach a consensus on the dependencies between the events, leading to multiple competing views on how to calculate the probabilities involved.
Contextual Notes
The discussion highlights the importance of understanding the dependencies between events in probability calculations, with participants noting that the lack of explicit information about these dependencies affects the outcomes.