probability

What is Pobablility? Probablility / Statistics Example Coin Dice Spinner Practice Games

Example

Problem:	A spinner has 4 equal sectors. What are the chances of landing on one sector after spinning the spinner? What are the chances of landing onanother?
Solution:	The chances of landing on each are 1 in 4, or one fourth.

This problem asked us to find some probabilities involving a spinner. Let's look at some definitions and examples from the problem above.

Definition	Example
An experiment is a situation involving chance or probability that leads to results called outcomes.	In the problem above, the experiment is spinning the spinner.
An outcome is the result of a single trial of an experiment.	The possible outcomes are landing on yellow, blue, green or red.
An event is one or more outcomes of an experiment.	One event of this experiment is landing on blue.
Probability is the measure of how likely an event is.	The probability of landing on blue is one fourth.

The following is the formula for finding the probability of an event.

Probability Of An Event

P(A) =	The Number Of Ways Event A Can Occur
	The total number Of Possible Outcomes

Try it.

Coin

Tossing a Coin.... When we toss a coin there are two possible outcomes. There is a chance that the coin could land on Heads and the second possible outcome is that the coin could land on Tails.

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Dice

Throwing a die.... When we throw a single dice, how many possible outcomes are there? If you said six, you are right.

The possible outcomes are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. So that means the chance of the die landing on a 1, is 1 out of 6, which we write as 1/6.

Spinner

Practice

Probability Experiments

Predict Outcomes