Skip to main content

Can you solve the false positive riddle? - Alex Gendler

4,003,876 Views

4,213 Questions Answered

TEDEd Animation

Let’s Begin…

Mining unobtainium is hard work – the rare mineral appears in only 1% of rocks in the mine. But your friend Tricky Joe has something up his sleeve. The unobtainium detector he’s been perfecting for months is finally ready, and it returns accurate readings 90% of the time. But can it really be trusted? Alex Gendler explains the false positive paradox.

About TED-Ed Animations

TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Alex Gendler
  • Director Outis
  • Associate Producer Elizabeth Cox, Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Content Producer Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Narrator Addison Anderson

More from Math In Real Life