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Hello, heads or tails.

It's a simple question with a far from simple answer,

one that takes us into the strange and complex world of probability.

Probability is the field of maths relating to random events and although commonplace now,

the idea that you can pluck a piece of maths from the tumbling of dice, the shuffling of cards

or the odds in the local lottery is a relatively recent and powerful

one. It may start with a toss of a coin but probability reaches into every area of the

modern world from the analysis of society to the decay of an atom to predicting the weather.

We'd meet her to discuss probability are Ian Stewart, Professor of Mathematics at Warwick University.

Colmeroni Dougal, lecturer in pure mathematics at the University of St Andrews and

Marcus Usoitoy professor of mathematics at Waddam College University of Oxford

Marcus Usotoi dice cards gambling

They are ancient pursuits, but who is the first person in the scheme of the setting off of this area of interest to who got to grips with it

I think it's quite striking how late it is. It's actually an Italian mathematician called Cardano in the 16th century.

I mean, as you say, we've been playing dice games for 5,000 years.

There's a game which you can see in the British Museum

which uses tetrahedral shaped dice.

But the idea that you can actually apply mathematics

to the role of a dice and actually, you know,

you think, well, it's a random thing how can earth how

...