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The Forum: Uncertainty

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Dice: Photo by BBC tv news archive

11/10/2014 GMT

Uncertainty

BBC World Service - The Forum, Uncertainty

How to approach uncertainty in the modern world

Exploring uncertainty and how to deal with it in the modern world. With Jordan Ellenberg, Rupert Read and Namwali Serpell.

Can you be certain about anything these days? How much certainty do we need in our daily lives? In an intriguing discussion about uncertainty Bridget Kendall brings together three people with different perspectives to share their thoughts and expertise. Mathematician Jordan Ellenberg explains how a new kind of statistics deals with randomness as well as certain logic, philosopher Rupert Read argues that we should act when facing serious situations like climate change without absolute evidential certainty and writer and literary scholar Namwali Serpell explores how novelists use uncertainty to captivate and challenge their readers.

(Photo: Dice being rolled. BBC copyright)

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