ABSTRACT
Before making any serious decision, we normally try to anticipate how the effects of our action will vary depending on the action taken. For example, before an anaesthetist can decide the amount of anaesthetic to administer to a patient, she needs to predict how the analgesic effect will vary as a function of the amount injected. Before a father can decide the amount of money to invest in his son’s college education, he needs to predict how the return will vary as a function of the size of the investment. The point is that prediction is essential to decision making.
