The subject of uncertainties (sometimes called errors) is traditionally taught (to first-year science undergraduates) towards the end of a course on statistics that defines probability as the limit of many trials, and discusses probability distribution functions and the Gaussian distribution. We show how to introduce students to the concepts of…

The concept of risk has entered into physics courses in various guises. It is treated explicitly in the "Advancing Physics" [1] course and implicitly at GCSE through "Ideas and Evidence" discussions. This could easily lead to such ideas as the balance between treatment and risk in radiotherapy and the likelihood of an asteroid strike. In this…