“Hume is right. Miracles are violations of the laws of nature. The merely extraordinary is not miraculous. That so many find this so hard to accept reflects the fact that humans have problems with conceiving the unlikely. That very improbable things will often happen is entirely predictable from the sheer number of opportunities each day provides for exceptions to the norm to occur. We also tend to overestimate how improbable things are. The miracle of the Hudson, for instance, is far less of a miracle when you think about the time, expense and expertise put into pilot and cabin crew safety training, and aircraft design.”