Visual guides to probability concepts with interactive examples
This section contains tutorial notes on select probability topics, designed to build intuition through visualizations and hands-on examples. These tutorials complement the full Learn Probability book.
What’s Here¶
These are standalone tutorials that dive deep into specific probability concepts:
Tutorial | What You’ll Learn |
|---|---|
Counting unions without double-counting — Visual guide using Venn diagrams to understand how to count elements in set unions | |
Why 23 people give 50% chance of shared birthdays — Build intuition for this counterintuitive result using complement counting |
Learning Approach¶
Visual First: Each tutorial uses Venn diagrams, plots, and interactive Python examples to build intuition before diving into formulas.
Concrete Examples: We start with specific numbers and work up to general principles, making abstract concepts tangible.
Hands-On Code: All tutorials are executable Jupyter notebooks—run them, modify them, experiment!
Full Probability Course¶
For a comprehensive probability education covering fundamental concepts through advanced topics, see the complete guide:
The full course includes:
Fundamental probability concepts and axioms
Conditional probability and independence
Bayes’ theorem and applications
Random variables and distributions
Expected value and variance
Common distributions (Binomial, Poisson, Normal, Exponential, etc.)
Interactive Python examples throughout
Why Probability Matters for AI/ML¶
Understanding probability is foundational for:
Machine Learning: Models make probabilistic predictions, not deterministic ones
Bayesian Methods: Prior beliefs updated with evidence
Uncertainty Quantification: Understanding model confidence
Statistical Testing: Evaluating model performance rigorously
Generative Models: Sampling from learned distributions
Prerequisites¶
These tutorials assume:
Basic algebra (no calculus required)
Familiarity with sets and basic counting
Python basics (for code examples)
Where to Start¶
New to probability? Start with the full course to build foundations.
Looking for specific topics? Jump to the tutorial that interests you:
Struggling with set union counting? → Inclusion-Exclusion
Want to understand famous paradoxes? → Birthday Paradox
These tutorials are designed to be accessible to anyone with high school math and a curiosity about how probability works.