Barbara Wintergreen

From our resident probabilities expert, Harfin Teuport: This one came up on air a few weeks back — a caller into one of our phone-in segments was convinced a slot machine “owed” him a win after a long losing run, and it turned into a genuinely good ten minutes of debate in the studio about how these games actually work. Enough listeners messaged in afterwards asking for more detail that it seemed worth writing up properly rather than trying to cram it into a single answer live on air.

Independence can mean different things at different stages of life. It might once have meant moving into your first home, building a career or travelling wherever you wanted. Later in life, it can be more about having the freedom to make your own decisions, manage your daily routine and spend your time doing the things you enjoy. Remaining independent does not mean you have to do absolutely everything yourself.

Switching off sounds simple until you actually try to do it. You finish work, sit down and suddenly remember an email you need to send tomorrow. You open your phone for five minutes and somehow emerge 45 minutes later knowing far too much about somebody else’s kitchen renovation. Sometimes, doing nothing is not particularly relaxing. Giving your attention to something completely different can be much more effective.