What is the probablity of two people on different sides of the planet coming up with the exact same idea?

Question

What is the probablity of two people on different sides of the planet coming up with the exact same idea with no contact between each other

im talking about some that would be very complex

what is the probablity in actual numbers

Answer 1

Anything is possible. 6 billion minds working all at once, there has to be a chance that someone else has thought about it too. But have they done anything about it? Who knows. Could be 1 in 6 billion.

Answer 2

It happens quite a bit, because engineers often find themselves working on identical problems. Hence the frequency of patents for identical ideas submitted on the same day, or nearly so.

The history of technology is filled with such incidents: the sewing machine was invented several times by different people, pretty much simultaneously. There's been a lot of controversy over the fatherhood of the telephone, the airplane, developments in radio and television, and the rest. For that matter, look how many identical ideas for television shows or movies seem to appear each year: it's usually not a matter of people copying each other, but of people finding identical solutions to identical problems.

Answer 3

Pretty good actually, unless it's very original (by definition, of course). Ideas don't come from vacuum, they are the result of putting old ideas to new use. Given the ready availability of old ideas on the internet to people all over the world, two people using them to come up with the same new one is common. Scientific journals are full of ideas that were submitted at the same time by different authors working independently.

Answer 4

There has been cases through out the history of science and technology where some very cutting edge and complex ideas have been developed virtually independently on the same subject at the same time. The development of the radio is a good case in question.
That being said, with the ability one has to spy out developments one is researching and develop others ideas, it is relatively easy to steal others research and ideas.
Solutions to the problem: Keep your research as secure as possible; Verify the developments/break throughs you develop; Publish, preferably in reputable journals, et cetera, your developments and findings; Get and establish copyright to your developments; Keep abreast of developments in your field of research; Get good, trustworthy support to help you do this.

Answer 5

With a population of 6 billion people the probability is very high.

Answer 6

I don't know, but it seems to happen to me all the time. Last night I googled my profile name: Piranhatron 3000. Turns out that Piranhatron used to be a Power Rangers character in an episode set in the year 3000! That is so freaking annoying! I hope nobody makes that connection on their own.

Answer 7

often and frequent. while we don't know all the past ties south americans and africans both figured out how to build pyramids. most early cultures that apparently have no ties valued gold. there isn't that much difference in the teachings of buddah and the teachings of jesus.

in science this happens a lot -- people "discover" the same thing at the same time -- one in france, one in japan.

things are usually more similar than they are different.

Answer 8

There is no way the calculate that. How many ideas are there? How many people are thinking about new ideas? Who knows? It may be pretty common but the chance of either acting on the idea is what makes it rare.

Answer 9

probably 1 in 6 billion

Answer 10

if yu want answers in terms of % then the answer is very difficult but otherwise speaking, i have faced this situation personally. me (in INDIA) and another person (in Switzerland) came up with the same idea about a website.
but by luck we met each other on net and now we are planning to launch it on net together.