Cognitive Scaffold

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MENTAL MODEL · M8846

Law of Large Numbers

Law of Large Numbers
SystemsHigh supportSystems Theory
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

When the number of trials is sufficiently large, the frequency of an event will approach its theoretical probability infinitely closely. -

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

The mathematical guarantee of long-termism. - Why isn't the casino afraid of you winning? Because under the law of large numbers, as long as you play long enough, the casino's slight mathematical advantage (House Edge) will inevitably wash away your money. Conversely, for an individual, if you have a system with positive expected value (such as value investing, doing the right thing), all you need to do is "increase the number of attempts" to let the law of large numbers take effect and smooth out the fluctuations of luck.

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In independent repeated trials, the sample mean converges in probability to the expected value as the number of trials increases. The mechanism is that random fluctuations are "averaged out" by a large number of repetitions, and the frequency tends to a stable probability.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_large_numbersZH · Explicit
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