Any Mathematicians or Statisticians out there?

[billyjoe]

How big of a sample do I need to determine odds of finding a certain coin or numerous coins in circulation? Of the 17 I'm specifically looking for I've found 15 after looking through about 200,000 individual coins. Thanks

------------billy

[mrmarket]

How big of a sample do I need to determine odds of finding a certain coin or numerous coins in circulation? Of the 17 I'm specifically looking for I've found 15 after looking through about 200,000 individual coins. Thanks

------------billy

The way to do it is to determine the odds of not finding it and subtracting that from 1.

Obviously knowing the number of coins minted and the total number of coins in circulation would be helpful as it would give you a percentage idea.

[billyjoe]

Mr. Market,
I listed the 17 lowest mintage Jefferson nickels and marked each one as I found it. So I can say the odds of my finding a 1938 s has been 3 in 195,400, a 1938 no mintmark, 19 in 195,400. Haven't found any of the 2 lowest mintage, 1950 d and 1939 d. I guess 195,000 is a representative sample. The pollsters use quite a low number, relatively, to predict election outcomes. I started this project to find 35% silver nickels that as of today are worth 2.44 each. Will report my final results in a few days on Peanuts "Should I buy Silver and Gold ?" thread

---------------billy