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Many events can't be predicted with total certainty. The best we can say is
how likely they are to happen, using the idea of probability.
Tossing a Coin
heads (H) or
tails (T)
Throwing Dice
Probability
In general:
Probability of an event happening = Number of ways it can happenTotal
number of outcomes
Number of ways it can happen: 1 (there is only 1 face with a "4" on it)
Probability Line
We can show probability on a Probability Line:
Example: toss a coin 100 times, how many Heads will come
up?
Probability says that heads have a ½ chance, so we can expect 50 Heads.
Words
Some words have special meaning in Probability:
The Sample Space is made up of Sample Points:
Example Events:
The Event Alex is looking for is a "double", where both dice have the same
number. It is made up of these 6 Sample Points:
Is it a
Experiment
Double?
{3,4} No
{5,1} No
{2,2} Yes
{6,3} No
... ...