SECTION 3,1 Basic Concepts of Probability and Counting 143 Using a Tree Diagram In Exercises 63-66, a prohability experiment consists of rolling six-sided die and spinning the spinner shown at the left. The spinner is equally likely to land on each color: Use a tree diagram to find the probability of the event. Then explain whether the event can be considered unusual. 63. Event A: rolling a 5 and the spinner landing on blue 64 Event B: rolling an odd number and the spinner landing on green 65. Event C rolling number less than 6 and the spinner landing on yellow 66. Event D: not rolling a number less than 6 and the spinner landing on yellow 67. Access Code An access code consists of three digits. Each digit can be any number from 0 through 9,and each digit can be repeated (a) What is the probability of randomly selecting the correct access code on the first try? (b) What is the probability of not selecting the correct access code on the first try?
Fundamentals of Probability
Probability is the branch of mathematics that deals with the likelihood that certain outcomes will occur. There are five basic rules, or axioms, that one must understand while studying the fundamentals of probability.
Learning Objectives
Explain the most basic and most important rules in determining the probability of an event
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- Probability is a number that can be assigned to outcomes and events. It always is greater than or equal to zero, and less than or equal to one.
- The sum of the probabilities of all outcomes must equal
11
. - If two events have no outcomes in common, the probability that one or the other occurs is the sum of their individual probabilities.
- The probability that an event does not occur is
11
minus the probability that the event does occur. - Two events
AA
andBB
are independent if knowing that one occurs does not change the probability that the other occurs.
Key Terms
- event: A subset of the sample space.
- sample space: The set of all outcomes of an experiment.
- experiment: Something that is done that produces measurable results, called outcomes.
- outcome: One of the individual results that can occur in an experiment.
In discrete probability, we assume a well-defined experiment, such as flipping a coin or rolling a die. Each individual result which could occur is called an outcome. The set of all outcomes is called the sample space, and any
subset of the sample space is called an event.
For example, consider the experiment of flipping a coin two times. There are four individual outcomes, namely
HH,HT,TH,TT.HH, HT, TH, TT.
The sample space is thus
{HH,HT,TH,TT}.\{HH, HT, TH, TT\}.
The event "at least one heads occurs" would be the set
{HH,HT,TH}.\{HH, HT, TH\}.
If the coin were a normal coin, we would assign the probability of
1/41/4
to each outcome.
In probability theory, the probability
PP
of some event
EE
, denoted
P(E)P(E)
, is usually defined in such a way that
PP
satisfies a number of axioms, or rules. The most basic and most important rules are listed below.
Probability Rules
- Probability is a number. It is always greater than or equal to zero, and less than or equal to one. This can be written as
0≤P(A)≤10 \leq P(A) \leq 1
. An impossible event, or an event that never occurs, has a probability of00
. An event that always occurs has a probability of11
. An event with a probability of0.50.5
will occur half of the time. - The sum of the probabilities of all possibilities must equal
11
. Some outcome must occur on every trial, and the sum of all probabilities is 100%, or in this case,11
. This can be written asP(S)=1P(S) = 1
, whereSS
represents the entire sample space. - If two events have no outcomes in common, the probability that one or the other occurs is the sum of
their individual probabilities. If one event occurs in
30%30\%
of the trials, a different event occurs in20%20\%
of the trials, and the two cannot occur together (if they are disjoint ), then the probability that one or the other occurs is30%+20%=50%30\% + 20\% = 50\%
. This is sometimes referred to as the addition rule, and can be simplified with the following:P(AorB)=P(A)+P(B)P(A \\ \text{or} \\ B) = P(A)+P(B)
. The word "or" means the same thing in mathematics as the union, which uses the following symbol:∪\cup
. Thus whenAA
andBB
are disjoint, we haveP(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B)P(A \cup B) = P(A)+P(B)
. - The probability that an event does not occur is
11
minus the probability that the event does occur. If an event occurs in60%60\%
of all trials, it fails to occur in the other40%40\%
, because100%−60%=40%100\% - 60\% = 40\%
. The probability that an event occurs and the probability that it does not occur always add up to100%100\%
, or1 1
. These events are called complementary events, and this rule is sometimes called the complement rule. It can be simplified withP(Ac)=1−P(A) P(A^c) = 1-P(A)
, whereAcA^c
is the complement ofAA
. - Two events
AA
andBB
are independent if knowing that one occurs does not change the probability that the other occurs. This is often called the multiplication rule. IfAA
andBB
are independent, thenP(AandB)=P(A)P(B)P(A \\ \text{and} \\ B) = P(A)P(B)
. The word "and" in mathematics means the same thing in mathematics as the intersection, which uses the following symbol:∩\cap
. Therefore when A and B are independent, we haveP(A∩B)=P(A)P(B).P(A \cap B) = P(A)P(B).
Extension of the Example
Elaborating on our example above of flipping two coins, assign the probability
1/41/4
to each of the
44
outcomes. We consider each of the five rules above in the context of this example.
1. Note that each probability is
1/41/4
, which is between
00
and
11
.
2. Note that the sum of all the probabilities is
1 1
, since
14+14+14+14=1\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{4}=1
.
3. Suppose
AA
is the event exactly one head occurs, and
BB
is the event exactly two tails occur. Then
A={HT,TH}A=\{HT,TH\}
and
B={ TT}B=\{TT\}
are disjoint. Also,
P(A∪B)=34=24+14= P(A)+P(B).P(A \cup B) = \frac{3}{4} = \frac{2}{4}+\frac{1}{4}=P(A) + P(B).
4. The probability that no heads occurs is
1/41/4
, which is equal to
1−3/41-3/4
. So if
A={HT,TH,HH}A=\{HT, TH, HH\}
is the event that a head occurs, we have
P(A c)=14=1−34=1−P(A).P(A^c)=\frac{1}{4}=1 - \frac{3}{4}=1-P(A).
5. If
AA
is the event that the first flip is a heads and
BB
is the event that the second flip is a heads, then
AA
and
BB
are independent. We have
A= {HT,HH}A=\{HT,HH\}
and
B={TH,HH}B=\{TH,HH\}
and
A∩B={HH}.A \cap B = \{HH\}.
Note that
P(A∩B)=14=12⋅12=P(A)P(B).P(A \cap B) = \frac{1}{4} =\frac{1}{2}\cdot \frac{1}{2} = P(A)P(B).
Unions and Intersections
Union and intersection are two key concepts in set theory and probability.
Learning Objectives
Give examples of the intersection and the union of two or more sets
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- The union of two or more sets is the set that contains all the elements of the two or more sets. Union is denoted by the symbol
∪\cup
. - The general probability addition rule for the union of two events states that
P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B)−P(A∩ B)P(A\cup B) = P(A)+P(B)-P(A \cap B)
, whereA∩BA \cap B
is the intersection of the two sets. - The addition rule can be shortened if the sets are disjoint:
P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B)P(A \cup B) = P(A) + P(B)
. This can even be extended to more sets if they are all disjoint:P(A∪B∪C)=P(A)+P(B)+P(C) P(A \cup B \cup C) = P(A) + P(B) + P(C)
. - The intersection of two or more sets is the set of elements that are common to every set. The symbol
∩\cap
is used to denote the intersection. - When events are
independent, we can use the multiplication rule for independent events, which states that
P(A∩B)=P(A)P(B)P(A \cap B) = P(A)P(B)
.
Key Terms
- independent: Not contingent or dependent on something else.
- disjoint: Having no members in common; having an intersection equal to the empty set.
Introduction
Probability uses the mathematical ideas of sets, as we have seen in the definition of both the sample space of an experiment and in the definition of an event. In order to perform basic probability calculations, we need to review the ideas from set theory related to the set operations of union, intersection, and complement.
Union
The union of two or more sets is the set that contains all the elements of each of the sets; an element is in the union if it belongs to at least one of the sets. The symbol for union is
∪\cup
, and is associated with the word "or", because
A∪BA \cup B
is the set of all elements that are in
A A
or
BB
(or both.) To find the union of two sets, list the elements that are in either (or both) sets. In terms of a Venn Diagram, the union of sets
AA
and
BB
can be shown as two completely shaded interlocking circles.
Union of Two Sets: The shaded Venn Diagram shows the union of set
AA
(the circle on left) with set
BB
(the circle on the right). It can be written shorthand as
A∪BA \cup B
.
In symbols, since the union of
AA
and
BB
contains all the points that are in
AA
or
BB
or both, the definition of the union is:
A∪B={x:x∈Aorx∈B}\displaystyle A \cup B = \{x: x\in A \\ \text{or} \\ x\in B \}
For example, if
A={1,3,5,7}A = \{1, 3, 5, 7\}
and
B={1,2,4,6}B = \{1, 2, 4, 6\}
, then
A∪B= {1,2,3,4,5,6,7}A \cup B = \{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7\}
. Notice that the element
11
is not listed twice in the union, even though it appears in both sets
AA
and
BB
. This leads us to the general addition rule for the union of two events:
P(A∪B)= P(A)+P(B)−P(A∩B)\displaystyle P(A \cup B) = P(A) + P(B) - P(A \cap B)
Where
P(A∩B)P(A\cap B)
is the intersection of the two sets. We must subtract this out to avoid double counting of the inclusion of an element.
If sets
A A
and
BB
are disjoint, however, the event
A∩BA \cap B
has no outcomes in it, and is an empty set denoted as
∅\emptyset
, which has a probability of zero. So, the above rule can be shortened for disjoint sets only:
P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B)\displaystyle P(A \cup B) = P(A)+P(B)
This can even be extended to more sets if they are all disjoint:
P(A∪B∪C)=P(A)+P(B)+P(C)\displaystyle P(A \cup B \cup C) = P(A) + P(B)+ P(C)
Intersection
The intersection of two or more sets is the set of elements that are common to each of the sets. An element is in the intersection if it belongs to all of the sets. The symbol for intersection is
∩\cap
, and is associated with the word "and", because
A∩BA \cap B
is the set of elements that are in
AA
and
BB
simultaneously. To find the intersection of two (or more) sets, include only those elements that are listed in both (or all) of the sets. In terms of a Venn Diagram, the intersection of two sets
AA
and
BB
can be shown at the shaded region in the middle of two interlocking circles.
AA
is the circle on the left, set
BB
is the circle on the right, and the intersection of
AA
and
BB
, or
A∩BA \cap B
, is the shaded portion in the middle.
In mathematical notation, the intersection of
AA
and
BB
is written as
A∩B={x:x∈Aandx∈B}A \cap B = \{x: x \in A \\ \text{and} \\ x \in B\}
. For example, if
A={1,3,5,7}A = \{1, 3, 5, 7\}
and
B={1,2,4,6}B = \{1, 2, 4, 6\}
, then
A∩B={1} A \cap B = \{1\}
because
11
is the only element that appears in both sets
AA
and
BB
.
When events are independent, meaning that the outcome of one event doesn't affect the outcome of another event, we can use the multiplication rule for independent events, which states:
P(A∩B)=P(A)P(B)\displaystyle P(A \cap B)= P(A)P(B)
For example, let's say we were tossing a coin twice, and we want to know the probability of tossing two heads. Since the first toss doesn't affect the second toss, the events are independent. Say is the event that the first toss is a heads and
BB
is the event that the second toss is a heads, then
P(A∩B)=12⋅12=14P(A \cap B) = \frac{1}{2} \cdot \frac{1}{2} = \frac{1}{4}
.
Conditional Probability
The conditional probability of an event is the probability that an event will occur given that another event has occurred.
Learning Objectives
Explain the significance of Bayes' theorem in manipulating conditional probabilities
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- The conditional probability
P(B∣A)P(B \vert A)
of an eventBB
, given an eventAA
, is defined by:P(B∣A)=P(A∩B)P( A)P(B|A)=\frac{P(A\cap B)}{P(A)}
, whenP(A)>0P(A) > 0
. - If the
knowledge that event
AA
occurs does not change the probability that eventBB
occurs, thenAA
andBB
are independent events, and thus,P(B∣A)=P(B)P(B|A) = P(B)
. - Mathematically, Bayes' theorem gives the relationship between the probabilities of
AA
andBB
,P(A)P(A)
andP(B)P(B)
, and the conditional probabilities ofAA
givenBB
andBB
givenAA
,P(A∣B)P(A|B)
andP(B∣A)P(B|A)
. In its most common form, it is:P(A∣B)=P (B∣A)P(A)P(B)P(A|B)=\frac{P(B|A)P(A)}{P(B)}
.
Key Terms
- conditional probability: The probability that an event will take place given the restrictive assumption that another event has taken place, or that a combination of other events has taken place
- independent: Not dependent; not contingent or depending on something else; free.
Probability of
BB
Given ThatAA
Has OccurredOur estimation of the likelihood of an event can change if we know that some other event has occurred. For example, the probability that a rolled die shows a
2 2
is
1/61/6
without any other information, but if someone looks at the die and tells you that is is an even number, the probability is now
1/31/3
that it is a
22
. The notation
P(B∣A)P(B|A)
indicates a conditional probability, meaning it indicates the probability of one event under the condition that we know another event has happened. The bar "|" can be read as "given", so that
P(B∣A)P(B|A)
is read as "the probability of
BB
given that
AA
has occurred".
The conditional probability
P(B∣A )\displaystyle P(B|A)
of an event
BB
, given an event
A A
, is defined by:
P(B∣A)=P(A∩B) P(A)\displaystyle P(B|A)=\frac{P(A\cap B)}{P(A)}
When
P(A)>0P(A) > 0
. Be sure to remember the distinct roles of
BB
and
AA
in this formula. The set after the bar is the one we are assuming has occurred, and its probability occurs in the denominator of the formula.
Example
Suppose that a coin is flipped 3 times giving the sample space:
S={HHH,HHT,HTH,THH,TTH,THT,HTT,TTT}S=\{HHH, HHT, HTH, THH, TTH, THT, HTT, TTT\}
Each individual outcome has probability
1/81/8
. Suppose that
BB
is the event that at least one heads occurs and
AA
is the event that all
33
coins are the same. Then the probability of
BB
given
AA
is
1/21/2
, since
A∩B={HHH}A \cap B=\{HHH\}
which has probability
1/81/8
and
A={HHH,TTT}A=\{HHH,TTT\}
which has probability
2/82/8
, and
1/82/8=12.\frac{1/8}{2/8}=\frac{1}{2}.
Independence
The conditional probability
P(B∣A)P(B|A)
is not always equal to the unconditional probability
P(B)P(B)
. The reason behind this is that the occurrence of event
AA
may provide extra information that can change the probability that event
BB
occurs. If the knowledge that event
AA
occurs does not change the probability that event
BB
occurs, then
AA
and
BB
are independent events, and thus,
P(B∣A)=P(B)P(B|A) = P(B)
.
Bayes' Theorem
In probability theory and statistics,
Bayes' theorem (alternatively Bayes' law or Bayes' rule) is a result that is of importance in the mathematical manipulation of conditional probabilities. It can be derived from the basic axioms of probability.
Mathematically, Bayes' theorem gives the relationship between the probabilities of
AA
and
BB
,
P(A)P(A)
and
P(B)P(B)
, and the conditional probabilities of
AA
given
BB
and
BB
given
AA
. In its most common form, it is:
P(A∣B)=P(B∣A)P(A)P(B)\displaystyle P(A|B)=\frac{P(B|A)P(A)}{P(B)}
This may be easier to remember in this alternate symmetric form:
P(A∣B)P(B∣A)=P(A) P(B)\displaystyle \frac{P(A|B)}{P(B|A)}=\frac{P(A)}{P(B)}
Example:
Suppose someone told you they had a nice conversation with someone on the train. Not knowing anything else about this conversation, the probability that they were speaking to a woman is
50%50\%
. Now suppose they also told you that this person had long hair. It is now more likely they were speaking to a woman, since women in in this city are more likely to have long hair than men. Bayes's theorem can be used to calculate the probability that the person is a woman.
To
see how this is done, let
WW
represent the event that the conversation was held with a woman, and
LL
denote the event that the conversation was held with a long-haired person. It can be assumed that women constitute half the population for this example. So, not knowing anything else, the probability that
WW
occurs is
P (W)=0.5P(W) = 0.5
.
Suppose it is also known that
75%75\%
of women in this city have long hair, which we denote as
P(L∣W)=0.75P(L|W) = 0.75
. Likewise, suppose it is known that
25 %25\%
of men in this city have long hair, or
P(L∣M)=0.25P(L|M) = 0.25
, where
MM
is the complementary event of
WW
, i.e., the event that the conversation was held with a man
(assuming that every human is either a man or a woman).
Our goal is to calculate the probability that the conversation was held with a woman, given the fact that the person had long hair, or, in our notation,
P(W∣L)P(W|L)
. Using the formula for Bayes's theorem, we have:
P(W∣L) =P(L∣W)P(W)P(L)=P(L∣W)P(W)P(L∣W)P(W )+P(L∣M)P(M)=0.75⋅ 0.50.75⋅0.5+0.25⋅0.5=0.75\displaystyle \begin{align} P(W|L) &= \frac{P(L|W)P(W)}{P(L)}\\ &= \frac{P(L|W)P(W)}{P(L|W)P(W)+P(L|M)P(M)}\\ &=\frac{0.75\cdot 0.5}{0.75\cdot 0.5+0.25\cdot 0.5}\\ &=0.75 \end{align}
Complementary Events
The complement of
AA
is the event in which
AA
does not occur.
Learning Objectives
Explain an example of a complementary event
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- The complement of an event
A A
is usually denoted asA′A'
,Ac A^c
orAˉ\bar{A}
. - An event and its complement are mutually exclusive, meaning that if one of the two events occurs, the other event cannot occur.
- An event and its complement are exhaustive, meaning that both events cover all possibilities.
Key Terms
- mutually exclusive: describing multiple events or states of being such that the occurrence of any one implies the non-occurrence of all the others
- exhaustive: including every possible element
What are Complementary Events?
In probability theory, the complement of any event
AA
is the event
[not A][\text{not}\ A]
, i.e. the event in which
AA
does not occur. The event
AA
and its complement
[not A][\text{not}\ A]
are mutually exclusive and exhaustive, meaning that if one occurs, the other does not, and that both groups cover all possibilities. Generally, there is only one event
BB
such that
AA
and
BB
are both mutually exclusive and exhaustive; that event is the complement of
AA
. The complement of an event
AA
is usually denoted as
A′A'
,
Ac A^c
or
Aˉ\bar{A}
.
Simple Examples
A common example used to demonstrate complementary events is the flip of a coin. Let's say a coin is flipped and one assumes it cannot land on its edge. It can either land on heads or on tails. There are no other possibilities (exhaustive), and both events cannot occur at the same time (mutually exclusive). Because these two events are complementary, we know that
P(heads)+P(tails)=1P(\text{heads}) + P(\text{tails}) = 1
.
Another simple example of complementary events is picking a ball out of a bag. Let's say there are three plastic balls in a bag. One is blue and two are red. Assuming that each ball has an equal chance of being pulled out of the bag, we know that
P(blue)=13P(\text{blue}) = \frac{1}{3}
and
P(red)=23P(\text{red}) = \frac{2}{3}
. Since we can only either chose blue or red (exhaustive) and we cannot choose both at the same time (mutually exclusive), choosing blue and choosing red are complementary events, and
P(blue)+P(red)=1P(\text{blue}) + P(\text{red}) = 1
.
Finally, let's examine a non-example of complementary events. If you were asked to choose any number, you might think that that number could either be prime or composite. Clearly, a number cannot be both prime and composite, so that takes care of the mutually exclusive property. However, being prime or being composite are not exhaustive because the number 1 in mathematics is designated as "unique. "
The Addition Rule
The addition rule states the probability of two events is the sum of the probability that either will happen minus the probability that both will happen.
Learning Objectives
Calculate the probability of an event using the addition rule
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- The addition rule is:
P(A∪B )=P(A)+P(B)−P(A∩B).P(A\cup B)=P(A)+P(B)-P(A\cap B).
- The last term has been
accounted for twice, once in
P(A)P(A)
and once inP(B)P(B)
, so it must be subtracted once so that it is not double-counted. - If
AA
andBB
are disjoint, thenP(A∩B)=0P(A\cap B)=0
, so the formula becomesP(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B).P(A \cup B)=P(A) + P(B).
Key Terms
- probability: The relative likelihood of an event happening.
Addition Law
The addition law of probability (sometimes referred to as the addition rule or sum rule), states that the probability that
AA
or
B B
will occur is the sum of the probabilities that
AA
will happen and that
BB
will happen, minus the probability that both
AA
and
BB
will happen. The addition rule is summarized by the formula:
P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B) −P(A∩B)\displaystyle P(A \cup B) = P(A)+P(B)-P(A \cap B)
Consider the following example. When drawing one card out of a deck of
5252
playing cards, what is the probability of getting heart or a face card (king, queen, or jack)? Let
HH
denote drawing a heart and
FF
denote drawing a face card. Since there are
1313
hearts and a total of
1212
face cards (
33
of each suit: spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs), but only
33
face cards of hearts, we obtain:
P(H)=1352\displaystyle P(H) = \frac{13}{52}
P(F)=1252\displaystyle P(F) = \frac{12}{52}
P(F∩H)=352\displaystyle P(F \cap H) = \frac{3}{52}
Using the addition rule, we get:
P(H∪F)=P(H)+P( F)−P(H∩F)=1352+1252−352 \displaystyle \begin{align} P(H\cup F)&=P(H)+P(F)-P(H\cap F)\\ &=\frac { 13 }{ 52 } +\frac { 12 }{ 52 } -\frac { 3 }{ 52 } \end{align}
The reason for subtracting the last term is that otherwise we would be counting the middle section twice (since
HH
and
FF
overlap).
Addition Rule for Disjoint Events
Suppose
A A
and
BB
are disjoint, their intersection is empty. Then the probability of their intersection is zero. In symbols:
P(A∩B)=0P(A \cap B) = 0
. The addition law then simplifies to:
P(A∪B)=P( A)+P(B)whenA∩B=∅P(A \cup B) = P(A) + P(B) \qquad \text{when} \qquad A \cap B = \emptyset
The symbol
∅\emptyset
represents the empty set, which indicates that in this case
AA
and
BB
do not have any elements in common (they do not overlap).
Example:
Suppose a card is drawn from a deck of 52 playing cards: what is the probability of getting a king or a queen? Let
AA
represent the event that a king is drawn and
BB
represent the event that a queen is drawn. These two events are disjoint, since there are no kings that are also queens. Thus:
P(A∪B)=P( A)+P(B)=452+452 =852=213 \displaystyle \begin{align} P(A \cup B) &= P(A) + P(B)\\&=\frac{4}{52}+\frac{4}{52}\\&=\frac{8}{52}\\&=\frac{2}{13} \end{align}
The Multiplication Rule
The multiplication rule states that the probability that
AA
and
BB
both occur is equal to the probability that
BB
occurs times the conditional probability that
AA
occurs given that
BB
occurs.
Learning Objectives
Apply the multiplication rule to calculate the probability of both
AA
and
BB
occurring
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- The multiplication rule can be written as:
P(A∩B)=P(B)⋅P(A∣B)P(A \cap B) = P(B) \cdot P(A|B)
. - We obtain the general multiplication rule by multiplying both sides of the definition of conditional probability by the denominator.
Key Terms
- sample space: The set of all possible outcomes of a game, experiment or other situation.
The Multiplication Rule
In probability theory, the Multiplication Rule states that the probability that
AA
and
BB
occur is equal to the probability that
AA
occurs times the conditional probability that
BB
occurs, given that we know
AA
has already occurred. This rule can be written:
P(A∩B)=P(B)⋅P(A∣B)\displaystyle P(A \cap B) = P(B) \cdot P(A|B)
Switching the role of
AA
and
BB
, we can also write the rule as:
P( A∩B)=P(A)⋅P(B∣A)\displaystyle P(A\cap B) = P(A) \cdot P(B|A)
We obtain the general multiplication rule by multiplying both sides of the definition of conditional probability by the denominator. That is, in the equation
P(A∣B)=P(A∩B)P (B)\displaystyle P(A|B)=\frac{P(A\cap B)}{P(B)}
, if we multiply both sides by
P(B)P(B)
, we obtain the Multiplication Rule.
The rule is useful when we know both
P(B)P(B)
and
P(A∣B)P(A|B)
, or both
P(A)P(A)
and
P(B∣A).P(B|A).
Example
Suppose that we draw two cards out of a deck of cards and let
A A
be the event the the first card is an ace, and
BB
be the event that the second card is an ace, then:
P(A)=452\displaystyle P(A)=\frac { 4 }{ 52 }
And:
P(B∣A)=351\displaystyle P\left( { B }|{ A } \right) =\frac { 3 }{ 51 }
The denominator in the second equation is
51 51
since we know a card has already been drawn. Therefore, there are
5151
left in total. We also know the first card was an ace, therefore:
P(A∩B)=P( A)⋅P(B∣A)=452⋅351 =0.0045\displaystyle \begin{align} P(A \cap B) &= P(A) \cdot P(B|A)\\ &= \frac { 4 }{ 52 } \cdot \frac { 3 }{ 51 } \\ &=0.0045 \end{align}
Independent Event
Note that when
AA
and
BB
are independent, we have that
P(B∣A)=P(B)P(B|A)= P(B)
, so the formula becomes
P(A∩B)=P(A)P(B)P(A \cap B)=P(A)P(B)
, which we encountered in a previous section. As an example, consider the experiment of rolling a die and flipping a coin. The probability that we get a
22
on the die and a tails on the coin is
16⋅12=112 \frac{1}{6}\cdot \frac{1}{2} = \frac{1}{12}
, since the two events are independent.
Independence
To say that two events are independent means that the occurrence of one does not affect the probability of the other.
Learning Objectives
Explain the concept of independence in relation to probability theory
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- Two events are independent if the following are true:
P(A∣B)=P(A)P(A|B) = P(A)
,P(B∣A)=P(B)P(B|A) = P(B)
, andP(A andB)=P(A)⋅P(B)P(A \\ \text{and} \\ B) = P(A) \cdot P(B)
. - If any one of these conditions is true, then all of them are true.
- If events
AA
andBB
are independent, then the chance ofAA
occurring does not affect the chance ofBB
occurring and vice versa.
Key Terms
- independence: The occurrence of one event does not affect the probability of the occurrence of another.
- probability theory: The mathematical study of probability (the likelihood of occurrence of random events in order to predict the behavior of defined systems).
Independent Events
In probability theory, to say that two events are independent means that the occurrence of one does not affect the probability that the other will occur. In other words, if events
AA
and
BB
are independent, then the chance of
AA
occurring does not affect the chance of
BB
occurring and vice versa. The concept of independence extends to dealing with collections
of more than two events.
Two events are independent if any of the following are true:
P(A∣B)=P(A)\displaystyle P(A|B) = P(A)
P(B∣A)=P(B)\displaystyle P(B|A) = P(B)
P(AandB)=P(A )⋅P(B)\displaystyle P(A \\ \text{and} \\ B) = P(A)\cdot P(B)
To show that two events are independent, you must show only one of the conditions listed above. If any one of these conditions is true, then all of them are true.
Translating the symbols into
words, the first two mathematical statements listed above say that the probability for the event with the condition is the same as the probability for the event without the condition. For independent events, the condition does not change the probability for the event. The third statement says that the probability of both independent events
AA
and
BB
occurring is the same as the probability of
AA
occurring, multiplied by the probability of
BB
occurring.
As an example, imagine you select two cards consecutively from a complete deck of playing cards. The two selections are not independent. The result of the first selection changes the remaining deck and affects the probabilities for the second
selection. This is referred to as selecting "without replacement" because the first card has not been replaced into the deck before the second card is selected.
However, suppose you were to select two cards "with replacement" by returning your first card to the deck and shuffling the deck before selecting the second card. Because the deck of cards is complete for both selections, the first selection does not affect the probability of the second selection. When selecting cards with
replacement, the selections are independent.
Consider a fair die role, which provides another example of independent events. If a person roles two die, the outcome of the first roll does not change the probability for the outcome of the second roll.
Example
Two friends are playing billiards, and decide to flip a coin to determine who will play first during each round. For the first two rounds, the coin lands on heads. They decide to play a third round, and flip the coin again. What is the probability that the coin will land on heads again?
First, note that each coin flip is an independent event. The side that a coin lands on
does not depend on what occurred previously.
For any coin flip, there is a
12{\frac{1}{2}}
chance that the coin will land on heads. Thus, the probability that the coin will land on heads during the third round is
12{\frac{1}{2}}
.
Example
When flipping a coin, what is the probability of getting tails
55
times
in a row?
Recall that each coin flip is independent, and the probability of getting tails is
12{\frac{1}{2}}
for any flip. Also recall that the following statement holds true for any two independent events A and B:
P(AandB)=P(A)⋅P(B)\displaystyle P(A \\ \text{and} \\ B) = P(A)\cdot P(B)
Finally, the concept of independence extends to collections of more than
22
events.
Therefore, the probability of getting tails
44
times in a row is:
12⋅12⋅12⋅1 2=116\displaystyle {\frac{1}{2}} \cdot {\frac{1}{2}} \cdot {\frac{1}{2}} \cdot {\frac{1}{2}} = {\frac{1}{16}}
Experimental Probabilities
The experimental probability is the ratio of the number of outcomes in which an event occurs to the total number of trials in an experiment.
Learning Objectives
Calculate the empirical probability of an event based on given information
Key Takeaways
Key Points
- In a general sense, experimental (or empirical) probability estimates probabilities from experience and observation.
- In simple cases, where the result of a trial only determines whether or not the specified event has occurred, modeling using a binomial distribution might be appropriate; then the empirical estimate is the maximum likelihood estimate.
- If a trial yields more information, the empirical probability can be improved upon by adopting further assumptions in the form of a statistical model. If such a model is fitted, it can be used to derive an estimate of the probability of the specified event.
Key Terms
- binomial distribution: The discrete probability distribution of the number of successes in a sequence of
nn
independent yes/no experiments, each of which yields success with probabilitypp
. - experimental probability: The probability that a certain outcome will occur, as determined through experiment.
- discrete: Separate; distinct; individual; non-continuous.
The experimental (or empirical) probability pertains to data taken from a number of trials. It is a probability calculated from experience, not from theory. If a sample of
xx
trials is observed that results in an event,
ee
, occurring
nn
times, the probability of event
ee
is calculated by the ratio of
nn
to
xx
.
experimental probability of event=occurrences of eventtotal number of trials \displaystyle \text{experimental probability of event} = \frac{\text{occurrences of event}}{\text{total number of trials}}
Experimental probability contrasts theoretical probability, which is what we would expect to happen. For example, if we flip a coin
10 10
times, we might expect it to land on heads
55
times, or half of the time. We know that this is unlikely to happen in practice. If we conduct a greater number of trials, it often happens that the experimental
probability becomes closer to the theoretical probability. For this reason, large sample sizes (or a greater number of trials) are generally valued.
In statistical terms, the empirical probability is an estimate of a probability. In simple cases, where the result of a trial only determines whether or not the specified event has occurred, modeling using a binomial distribution might be appropriate. A binomial distribution is the discrete probability distribution of the number of successes
in a sequence of
nn
independent yes/no experiments. In such cases, the empirical probability is the most likely estimate.
If a trial yields more information, the empirical probability can be improved on by adopting further assumptions in the form of a statistical model: if such a model is fitted,
it can be used to estimate the probability of the specified event. For example, one can easily assign a probability to each possible value in many discrete cases: when throwing a die, each of the six values
11
to
66
has the probability of
16\frac{1}{6}
.
Advantages
An advantage of estimating probabilities using empirical probabilities is that this procedure includes few assumptions. For example, consider estimating the probability among a population of men that satisfy two conditions:
- They are over six feet in height.
- They prefer strawberry jam to raspberry jam.
A direct estimate could be found by counting the number of men who satisfy both conditions to give the empirical probability of the combined condition.
An alternative estimate could be found by multiplying the proportion of men who are over six feet in
height with the proportion of men who prefer strawberry jam to raspberry jam, but this estimate relies on the assumption that the two conditions are statistically independent.
Disadvantages
A disadvantage in using empirical probabilities is that without theory to "make sense" of them, it's easy to draw incorrect conclusions. Rolling a six-sided die one hundred times it's entirely possible that well over
16\frac{1}{6}
of the rolls will land on
44
. Intuitively we know that the probability of landing on any number should be equal to the probability of
landing on the next. Experiments, especially those with lower sampling sizes, can suggest otherwise.
This shortcoming becomes particularly problematic when estimating probabilities which are either very close to zero, or very close to one. For example, the probability of drawing a number from between
11
and
10001000
is
11000\frac{1}{1000}
. If
10001000
draws are taken and the first number drawn is
55
, there are
999999
draws left to draw a
55
again and thus have experimental data that shows double the expected likelihood of drawing a
55
.
In these cases, very large sample sizes would be needed in order to estimate such probabilities to a good standard of relative accuracy. Here statistical models can help, depending on the context.
For example, consider estimating the probability that the lowest of the maximum daily temperatures at a site
in February in any one year is less than zero degrees Celsius. A record of such temperatures in past years could be used to estimate this probability. A model-based alternative would be to select of family of probability distributions and fit it to the data set containing the values of years past. The fitted distribution would provide an alternative estimate of the desired probability. This alternative method can provide an estimate of the probability even if all values in the record are greater
than zero.
Licenses and Attributions
CC licensed content, Shared previously
- Curation and Revision. Authored by: Boundless.com. License: Public Domain: No Known Copyright
CC licensed content, Specific attribution
- Probability axioms. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- independent. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- disjoint. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- sample space. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Union (set theory). Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Intersection (set theory). Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- independent. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- disjoint. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. Located at: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Venn0001.svg. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Conditional probability. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Bayes' theorem. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- independent. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- conditional probability. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Complementary event. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- exhaustive. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- mutually exclusive. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Heads or tails. Provided by: Wikimedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Probability. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Some rules of probability - Statistics. Provided by: Wikidot. Located at: //statistics.wikidot.com/ch5. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Probability axioms. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- addition rule. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- probability. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. Located at: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Venn0111.svg. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Heads or tails. Provided by: Wikimedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Some rules of probability - Statistics. Provided by: Wikidot. Located at: //statistics.wikidot.com/ch5. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Boundless. Provided by: Boundless Learning. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- sample space. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Heads or tails. Provided by: Wikimedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Independence (probability theory). Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Roberta Bloom, Probability Topics: Independent & Mutually Exclusive Events (modified R. Bloom). September 17, 2013. Provided by: OpenStax CNX. Located at: //cnx.org/contents/[email protected]. License: CC BY: Attribution
- independence. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- probability theory. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Heads or tails. Provided by: Wikimedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- All sizes | Ace of Spades Card Deck Trick Magic Macro 10-19-09 2 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!. Provided by: Flickr. Located at: //www.flickr.com/photos/stevendepolo/4028160820/sizes/o/in/photostream/. License: CC BY: Attribution
- binomial distribution. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- discrete. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Empirical probability. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- experimental probability. Provided by: Wiktionary. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Nuvola apps atlantik. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0001. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Venn0111. Provided by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- Heads or tails. Provided by: Wikimedia. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- All sizes | Ace of Spades Card Deck Trick Magic Macro 10-19-09 2 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!. Provided by: Flickr. Located at: //www.flickr.com/photos/stevendepolo/4028160820/sizes/o/in/photostream/. License: CC BY: Attribution