Your Odds of Dying From…

The times they are a-changin’.

This post seems to be older than 17 years—a long time on the internet. It might be outdated.

As seen in the March 2002 editition of WIRED

  • Smallpox: Zero
  • Catastrophic asteroid strike: 1 in 1,960,000,000
  • Odds you’ll win the Powerball jackpot: 1 in 80,089,128
  • Anthrax: 1 in 55,052,999
  • Pneumonic plague: 1 in 54,059,705
  • Venomous snakes, lizards, and spiders: 1 in 54,049,600
  • Falling after collision or shoving: 1 in 45,041,333
  • Odds your IQ is above Bobby Fisher’s (187): 1 in 36,927,646
  • Cleansers and paints: 1 in 27,024,800
  • Domestic hijacking: 1 in 16,817,784
  • Odds a coin tosed two dozen times will land heads up every time: 1 in 16,777,216
  • Salmonella: 1 in 10,587,115
  • Execution by US civil authorities: 1 in 3,622,270
  • Lightning strike: 1 in 3,106,880
  • Fleash-eating bacteria: 1 in 1,252,488
  • Airplane crash: 1 in 659,779
  • Odds you’ll get a royal flush in 5-card poker: 1 in 649,739
  • Railway accident: 1 in 524,753
  • Poison gases or vapors: 1 in 494,960
  • Electrical current: 1 in 493,153
  • Falling object: 1 in 373,787
  • Bad medical care: 1 in 83,720
  • Residential fire: 1 in 83,025
  • Odds you’ll get a new identity under the witness protection program: 1 in 20,000
  • Gun shot: 1 in 8,802
  • Odds you’ll have triplets without using fertillity drugs: 1 in 8,100
  • Motor vehicle accident: 1 in 6,585
  • Flu and pneumonia: 1 in 4,107
  • Diabetes: 1 in 4,009
  • Odds you’ll be bumped from your next flight: 1 in 4,000
  • Unintentional injuries: 1 in 2,941
  • Chronic respiratory disease (e.g., asthma): 1 in 2,228
  • Stroke: 1 in 1,658
  • Odds you’ll injure yourself playing golf: 1 in 600
  • Cancer: 1 in 499
  • Heart disease: 1 in 388
  • Odds your next meal is from McDonald’s: 1 in 8

Statistics are based on the most current data availible from the following sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Danger Ahead, by Larry Laudan; Heritage Foundation; IQ comparison tables; Rodrigo de la Jara; National Safety Council US Statstical Abstract; True Odds, by James Walsh.

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