Poisson and Hypergeometric Prob.

Distribution
Classroom Exercise Set

1. Consider a Poisson distribution with 𝜇 = 3.

a. Write the appropriate Poisson probability function.
b. Compute f (2).
c. Compute f (1).
d. Compute P (x ≥ 2).

2. Phone calls arrive at the rate of 48 per hour at the reservation desk for Regional Airways.
a. Compute the probability of receiving three calls in a 5-minute interval of time.
b. Compute the probability of receiving exactly 10 calls in 15 minutes.
c. Suppose no calls are currently on hold. If the agent takes 5 minutes to complete the current call, how
many callers do you expect to be waiting by that time? What is the probability that none will be waiting?
d. If no calls are currently being processed, what is the probability that the agent can take 3 minutes for
personal time without being interrupted by a call?

3. Airline passengers arrive randomly and independently at the passenger screening facility at a major international
airport. The mean arrival rate is 10 passengers per minute.
a. Compute the probability of no arrivals in a one-minute period
b. Compute the probability that three or fewer passengers arrive in one minute period
c. Compute the probability of no arrivals in a 15 second period
d. Compute the probability of at least one arrival in a 15 second period.

4. Consider a Poisson distribution with a mean of two occurrences per time period.
a. Write the appropriate Poisson probability function.
b. What is the expected number of occurrences in three-time periods?
c. Write the appropriate Poisson probability function to determine the probability of x occurrences in three-
time periods.
d. Compute the probability of two occurrences in one-time period.
e. Compute the probability of six occurrences in three-time periods.
f. Compute the probability of five occurrences in two-time periods.

5. More than 50 million guests stay at bed and breakfasts (B&Bs) each year. The website for the Bed and Breakfast
Inns of North America, which averages seven visitors per minute, enables many B&Bs to attract guests (Time,
September 2001).
a. Compute the probability of no website visitors in a one-minute period.
b. Compute the probability of two or more website visitors in a one-minute period.
c. Compute the probability of one or more website visitors in a 30-second period.
d. Compute the probability of five or more website visitors in a one-minute period.

6. An average of 15 aircraft accidents occur each year (The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2004)
a. Compute the mean number of aircraft accidents per month.
b. Compute the probability of no accidents during a month.
c. Compute the probability of exactly one accident during a month.
d. Compute the probability of more than one accident during a month.

7. An executive makes an average five telephones calls per hour at a cost of Rs. 2 per call. Determine the probability
that in any one hour the cost of calls (a) Exceeds Rs. 6 (b) remains less than Rs. 10.

Poisson and Hypergeometric Prob. Distribution

8. Colour blindness appears in 1% of the population. How large a random sample (with replacement) should one
draw from the population if the probability of it containing at least 1 colour blind person is 95% or more.

9. Suppose N =10 and r =3. Compute the hypergeometric probabilities for the following values of n and x.
a. N = 4, x = 1.
b. N = 2, x = 2.
c. N = 2, x = 0.
d. N = 4, x = 2.
e. N = 4, x = 4.

10. Suppose N = 15 and r = 4. What is the probability of x = 3 for n = 10?

11. In a survey conducted by XYZ corp, respondents were asked, “What is your favourite sports to watch?” Football
and Basketball ranked number one and two in terms of preference. Assume that in a group of 10 individuals,
seven prefer football and three prefer basketball. A random sample of three of these individuals is selected.
a. What is the probability that exactly two prefer football?
b. What is the probability that the majority (either two or three) prefer football?

Poisson and Hypergeometric Prob. Distribution