Michael Fuhr <mike@fuhr.org> writes:
> Would it be accurate to say that the planner makes the bet most
> likely to win without regard to how badly it might lose?
Yes, I think that's a fair summary.
> Is taking the downside into consideration a tough problem to solve, or
> is it simply not worthwhile in the large?
I don't know how to solve it, and whether it would be worthwhile would
depend considerably on how expensive the proposed solution is ...
regards, tom lane