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Contraposition Posted 12 years ago
Vocabulary
however long the odds against
Blaise Pascal reckoned that, however long the odds against God's existence might be, there is an even larger asymmetry in the penalty for guessing wrong. You'd better believe in God, because if you are right you stand to gain eternal bliss.
...There is something distinctly odd about the argument, however. Believing is not something you can decide as a matter of policy. At least, it is not something I can decide to as an act of will.
...Bertrand Russell was asked what he would say if he died and found himself confronted by God, demanding to know why Russell had not believed in him. 'Not enough evidence, God' ... Mightn't God respect Russell for his courageous scepticism far more than he would respect Pascal for his cowardly bet-hedging? ... We are talking about a bet, remember, and Pascal wasn't claiming that his wager enjoyed anything but very long odds.
Richard Dawkins, "The God Delusion"
What does 'however long the odds' (long odds) mean?
What does 'as a matter of policy' mean?
What does stand to gain mean?
What does 'bet-hedging' mean?
...There is something distinctly odd about the argument, however. Believing is not something you can decide as a matter of policy. At least, it is not something I can decide to as an act of will.
...Bertrand Russell was asked what he would say if he died and found himself confronted by God, demanding to know why Russell had not believed in him. 'Not enough evidence, God' ... Mightn't God respect Russell for his courageous scepticism far more than he would respect Pascal for his cowardly bet-hedging? ... We are talking about a bet, remember, and Pascal wasn't claiming that his wager enjoyed anything but very long odds.
Richard Dawkins, "The God Delusion"
What does 'however long the odds' (long odds) mean?
What does 'as a matter of policy' mean?
What does stand to gain mean?
What does 'bet-hedging' mean?
Top answer
contraposition What does 'however long the odds' (long odds) mean? Long odds= very improbable. The expression relates to betting on (horse) races.
- contraposition What does 'however long the odds' (long odds) mean?
- Long odds= very improbable.
- The expression relates to betting on (horse) races.
- The odds are 3-2 on the favorite.
- There are two entries with very long odds of 100-1.
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1 Answers
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contrapositionWhat does 'however long the odds' (long odds) mean?Long odds= very improbable.
The expression relates to betting on (horse) races. The odds are 3-2 on the favorite. There are two entries with very long odds of 100-1.
contrapositionWhat does 'as a matter of policy' mean?Something that you, a company, or
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