CHAPTER - PROBABILITY ( Notes )

Exercise – 14.1
1. If P(E) = 0.05, what is the probability of ‘not E’?

Answer : P(E) + P( E ) = 1 ( pg no – 206 ) complementary event formula

P( E ) = 1-P(E)

P(E) = 0.05

P( E ) = 1-0.05

P( E ) = 0.95

2. A bag contains lemon-flavoured candies only. Malini takes out one candy

without looking into the bag. What is the probability that she takes out

(i) an orange-flavoured candy?

(ii) a lemon-flavoured candy?

Answer : i) Probability that she takes out an orange flavoured candy is 0 because
the bag contains only lemon flavoured candies that is the bag contains no orange
flavoured candy. ( Impossible event )

ii) Probability that she takes out a lemon flavoured candy is 1 because the bag
contains all lemon flavoured candies only. ( Sure event )

3. A bag contains 3 red balls and 5 black balls. A ball is drawn at random
from the bag. What is the probability that the ball drawn is

(i) red?

(ii) not red?

Answer : Let E be the event that ‘the ball drawn is red’.

Total number of balls in the bag

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

i. Probability of drawing red balls = P (red balls) = (no. of red balls/total no.
of balls) = 3/8

ii. Probability of drawing black balls = P (black balls) = (no. of black

4. A piggy bank contains hundred 50p coins, fifty ₹1 coins, twenty ₹2 coins
and ten ₹5 coins. If it is equally likely that one of the coins will fall out when
the bank is turned upside down, what is the probability that the coin

(i) will be a 50 p coin?

(ii) will not be a ₹5 coin?

Answer : Total no. of coins in the piggy bank = 100+50+20+10 = 180

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

Number of all possible outcomes = 180

i) No of favourable outcomes to the event that the coin will be a 50p coin =
100

Probability that the coin will be a 50p coin

P( 50 p coin ) = 100 / 180 = 5 / 9

ii ) No of favourable outcomes to the event that the coin will not be a ₹ 5 coin

= 100 + 50 + 20 = 170

Probability that the coin will not be a ₹ 5 coin

P ( not ₹ 5 coin ) = 170 / 180

5. A die is thrown once. Find the probability of getting

(i) a prime number

(iii) an odd number

Answer : Number of all possible outcomes ( 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 )

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

i) Total number of prime numbers = 3 (2, 3 and 5)

P (getting a prime number) = 3 / 6 = 1 / 2

ii ) Total numbers lying between 2 and 6 = 3 (3, 4 and 5)

P (getting a number between 2 and 6) = 3 / 6 = 1 / 2

iii ) Total number of odd numbers = 3 (1, 3 and 5)

P (getting an odd number) = 3 / 6 = 1 / 2

6. One card is drawn from a well-shuffled deck of 52 cards. Find the

(i) a king of red colour

(ii) a face card

(iii) a red face card

(iv) the jack of hearts

(v) a spade

(vi) the queen of diamonds

Answer : Total number of cards = 52

Number of all possible outcomes = 52

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

i ) Total number of kings of red colour = 2

ii ) Total number of face cards = 12

P (getting a face card) = 12/52 = 3/13

iii) Total number of red face cards = 6

P (getting a king of red colour) = 6/52 = 3/26

iv ) Total number of jack of hearts = 1

P (getting a king of red colour) = 1/52

v ) Total number of kings of spade = 13

P (getting a king of red colour) = 13/52 = 1 / 4

vi ) Total number of queens of diamonds = 1

P (getting a king of red colour) = 1/52

7. Five cards, the ten, jack, queen, king and ace of diamonds, are well-shuffled
with their face downwards. One card is then picked up at random.

(i) What is the probability that the card is the queen?

(ii) If the queen is drawn and put aside, what is the probability that the second
card picked up is (a) an ace? (b) a queen?

Answer : Total number of cards = 5

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

i) Numbers of queens = 1

P (picking a queen) = 1 / 5

ii ) If the queen is drawn and put aside, the total number of cards left is (5-4) = 4

Total number of aces = 1

iii ) Total number of queens = 0

P (picking a queen) = 0 / 4 = 0

8. 12 defective pens are accidentally mixed with 132 good ones. It is not
possible to just look at a pen and tell whether or not it is defective. One pen is
taken out at random from this lot. Determine the probability that the pen
taken out is a good one.

Answer : Numbers of pens = Numbers of defective pens + Numbers of good pens

∴ Total number of pens = 132+12 = 144 pens

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

P(picking a good pen) = 132/144 = 11/12

9. A child has a die whose six faces show the letters as given below:

The die is thrown once. What is the probability of getting

(i) A?

(ii) D?

Answer : The total number of possible outcomes (or events) = 6

P(E) = (Number of favourable outcomes/ Total number of outcomes)

(i) The total number of faces having A on it = 2

P (getting A) = 2 / 6 = 1 / 3

(ii) The total number of faces having D on it = 1

P (getting D) = 1 / 6
10 . Suppose you drop a die at random on the rectangular region shown in
Fig. 14.6 What is the probability that it will land inside the circle with a
diameter of 1m?

3m

Answer :

2m

Area of the rectangular region = L x B = (3×2) m2 = 6 m2

Diameter of the circle = 1m

Radius of circle ( r ) = 1 / 2 m

The area of the circle = πr2 = π(½)2 m2 = π/4 m2

P( E) = Area of the favourable region / Area of the whole region

The probability that die will land inside the circle = [(π/4)/6] = π/24

11. A game consists of tossing a one-rupee coin 3 times and noting its outcome
each time. Hanif wins if all the tosses give the same result, i.e., three heads or
three tails, and loses otherwise. Calculate the probability that Hanif will lose
the game.

Answer : The total number of outcomes = 8 (HHH, HHT, HTH, THH, TTH, HTT,
THT, TTT)

Total outcomes in which Hanif will lose the game = 6 (HHT, HTH, THH, TTH,
HTT, THT)
P (losing the game) = 6/8 = 3 / 4

12. Which of the following arguments are correct and which are not correct?
Give reasons for your Solution.

(i) If two coins are tossed simultaneously, there are three possible outcomes –
two heads, two tails or one of each. Therefore, for each of these outcomes, the
probability is 1/3.

(ii) If a die is thrown, there are two possible outcomes – an odd number or an
even number. Therefore, the probability of getting an odd number is 1/2.

Answer : i ) All the possible events are (H, H); (H, T); (T, H) and (T, T)

P (getting two heads) = 1 / 4

P (getting one of each) = 2 / 4 = 1 / 2

This statement is incorrect.

ii ) Since the two outcomes are equally likely, this statement is correct.