Concepts of Probability: Chapter 4
Concepts of Probability: Chapter 4
3) An outcome is:
a. what is observed when an experiment is performed
b. what happens when you do not perform an experiment
c. a collection of many events
d. a collection of at least two sample spaces
6) An event:
a. is the same as a sample space
b. includes exactly one outcome
c. includes one or more of the outcomes
d. none of these
7) A simple event:
a. is a collection of exactly two outcomes
b. includes one and only one outcome
c. does not include any outcome
d. none of these
11) The experiment of rolling a die once and observing for an even or odd number has:
a. six outcomes
b. eight outcomes
c. four outcomes
d. two outcomes
12) Two households are randomly selected and it is observed whether or not each of them
owns a telephone answering machine. The total number of outcomes for this
experiment is:
a. six
b. eight
c. two
d. four
13) A useful graphical method of constructing the sample space for an experiment is:
a. a tree diagram
b. a pie chart
c. a histogram
d. an ogive
14) A box contains a few red and a few white marbles. Two marbles are randomly drawn
from this box and the color of these marbles is observed. The total number of
outcomes for this experiment is:
a. eight
b. four
c. six
d. two
15) Two households are randomly selected and it is observed whether or not they own a
telephone answering machine. Which of the following is a simple event?
a. Exactly one of them owns a telephone answering machine.
b. At least one of them owns a telephone answering machine.
c. At most one of them owns a telephone answering machine.
d. Neither of the two owns a telephone answering machine.
16) A box contains a few red and a few white marbles. Two marbles are randomly drawn
from this box and the color of these marbles is observed. Which of the following is an
example of a simple event?
a. At most one marble is red.
b. At least one marble is white.
c. Both marbles are white.
d. Not more than one marble is red.
17) A coin is tossed twice. The event that two tails are observed is a:
a. compound event
b. simple event
c. multiple outcome
d. multinomial sample point
18) A sample of two adults is taken and it is observed if they are in favor of or against
gun control. Assume that there are only two outcomes for each adult-either he/she is
in favor of or he/she is against the gun control. Which of the following is a compound
event?
a. Both adults are in favor of gun control.
b. Exactly two adults are in favor of gun control.
c. Neither of the two is against gun control.
d. At most one is in favor of gun control.
20) A box contains a certain number of auto parts. A few of these parts are defective and
the remaining are good. Two parts are selected at random from this box and it is
observed if they are good or defective. Which of the following is a compound event?
24) The sum of the probabilities of all final outcomes for an experiment is always:
a. equal to 1
b. equal to zero
c. less than 1
d. greater than 1
28) Assume that you invested $10,000 in each of three stocks. Each stock can increase in
value, decrease in value, or remain the same. The number of possible outcomes is:
a. 10,000
b. 3
c. 9
d. 27
29) According to the classical probability rule, the probability of a simple event is:
a. the total number of outcomes for the experiment divided by 1
b. 1 divided by the sample space
c. 1 divided by the total number of outcomes for the experiment
d. 1 divided by the compound event
30) According to the classical probability rule, the probability of a compound event is:
a. the total number of outcomes for the experiment divided by 4
b. the number of outcomes favorable to the given event divided by the total number
of outcomes
c. 5 divided by the total number of outcomes for the experiment
d. 2 divided by the number of outcomes favorable to the given event
31) According to the relative frequency concept of probability, the probability of an event
is:
a. 1 divided by the total number of outcomes for the experiment
b. the number of times the given event is observed divided by the total number of
repetitions of the experiment
c. the number of outcomes favorable to the given event divided by the sample space
d. none of these
32) A die is rolled once. The probability of obtaining an odd number is:
a. .60
b. .25
c. .17
d. .50
34) One person is selected from a group of eight males and two females. The two events
"a male is selected" and "a female is selected" are:
a. independent
b. equally likely
c. not equally likely
d. none of these
37) Assume that the events A and B are independent with P(A) = .30 and P(B) = .40. The
probability that both events will occur simultaneously is:
a. .10
b. .12
c. .70
d. .75
38) Twenty-five persons are polled about their opinions on the income tax reforms. The
probabilities that a person is in favor of income tax reforms, he/she is against it, and
he/she has no opinion should all add up to:
a. .00
b. .85
c. 1.00
d. more than 1.0
39) In a group of 80 students, 16 are seniors. If one student is randomly selected from this
group, the probability that this student is a senior is:
a. .80
b. .16
c. .20
d. .25
40) In a group of 400 families, 300 own houses. If one family is randomly selected from
this group, the probability that this family owns a house is:
a. .25
b. .75
c. .80
d. .40
41) An unbalanced die is rolled 500 times and a 3-spot is obtained 110 times. The
probability of obtaining the 3-spot for this die is approximately:
a. .92
b. 1/6
c. .22
d. .13
42) Two events A and B are said to be independent if:
a. P( A and B ) = P(A) . P(B)
b. P( A and B ) = P(A) + P(B)
c. P(A|B) = P(B)
d. P(B|A) = P(A)
43) Two hundred items are selected from the production line of a company and 14 of
them are found to be defective. The probability that an item manufactured by this
company is defective is approximately:
a. .07
b. .14
c. .04
d. .19
47) The conditional probability of event A given that event B has already occurred is
written as:
a. P(A or B)
b. P(B|A)
c. P(A and B)
d. P(A|B)
51) Two events are said to be dependent if the occurrence of one event:
a. affects the probability of the occurrence of the other event
b. does not affect the probability of the occurrence of the other event
c. means that second event cannot occur
d. means that second event is definite to occur
57) An experiment consists of three stages. There are two possible outcomes in the first
stage, three possible outcomes in the second stage, and four possible outcomes in the
third stage. The total number of outcomes of this experiment is:
a. 9
b. 24
c. 26
d. 18
The following table gives the two-way classification of 500 students based on sex and
whether or not they suffer from math anxiety.
59) If one student is randomly selected from these 500 students, the probability that this
selected student is a female is:
a. .480
b. .653
c. .520
d. .347
60) If one student is randomly selected from these 500 students, the probability that this
selected student suffers from math anxiety is:
a. .670
b. .275
c. .333
d. .330
61) If one student is randomly selected from these 500 students, the probability that this
selected student suffers from math anxiety given that he is a male is approximately:
a. .333
b. .673
c. .327
d. .667
62) If one student is randomly selected from these 500 students, the probability that this
selected student is a female given that she does not suffer from math anxiety is
approximately:
a. .649
b. .327
c. .889
d. .515
64) Which of the following statements is correct given that the events A and B have
nonzero probabilities?
a. A and B cannot be both independent and mutually exclusive
b. A and B can be both independent and mutually exclusive
c. A and B are always independent
d. A and B are always mutually exclusive
[67- 73] One thousand ISU students were asked whether Republicans or Democrats have
better domestic economic policies. The following table gives the two-way classification
of their opinions.
68) The probability that the selected student says Democrats have better domestic
economic policies is:
a. .390
b. .540
c. .070
d. .400
69) The probability that the selected student is a female given that she thinks that
Republicans have better domestic economic policies is approximately:
a. .579
b. .382
c. .686
d. .436
70) The probability that the selected student has no opinion given that he is a male is
approximately:
a. .667
b. .375
c. .067
d. .075
74) The probability that a randomly selected college student is a part-time student is .18.
The probability of the complementary event of this event is:
a. .18
b. .64
c. .82
d. cannot find
75) The probability that a family owns stocks is .56. The probability of the
complementary event of this event is:
a. .65
b. .44
c. .25
d. cannot find
76) The intersection of two events A and B represents the outcomes that are:
a. either in A or in B or in both A and B
b. common to both A and B
c. either in A or in B
d. not common to both A and B
79) The probability of the intersection of two events A and B is given by:
a. P(A) + P(B)
b. P(A) + P(B) – P(A and B)
c. P(A) P(A|B)
d. P(A) P(B|A)
81) The joint probability of two mutually exclusive events is always equal to:
a. 1 divided by the number of outcomes
b. .50
c. zero
d. 1.0
[82 – 86] The following table gives a two-way classification of all employees of a
company in Peoria based on whether they are smokers or nonsmokers and whether or not
they suffer from any allergies.
85) The probability that a randomly selected employee is a smoker and suffers from
allergies is approximately:
a. .011
b. .351
c. .117
d. .083
86) The probability that a randomly selected employee is a nonsmoker and does not
suffer from allergies is approximately:
a. .617
b. .008
c. .500
d. .281
[87– 92]One thousand students were asked whether Republicans or Democrats have
better domestic economic policies. The following table gives the two-way classification
of their opinions.
Sex Republicans Democrats No Opinion
Male 220 340 40
Female 170 200 30
87) The joint probability of events "Republicans" and "Male" is:
a. .170
b. .340
c. .220
d. .880
89) The joint probability of events "Male" and "No Opinion" is:
a. .040
b. .030
c. .300
d. .400
90) The joint probability of events "Democrats" and "No Opinion" is:
a. .340
b. .000
c. .040
d. .030
91) The probability that a randomly selected student from these 1000 students is a female
and holds the opinion that Republicans have better domestic economic policies is:
a. .022
b. .017
c. .220
d. .170
92) The probability that a randomly selected student from these 1000 students is a male
and holds the opinion that Democrats have better domestic economic policies is:
a. .200
b. .220
c. .600
d. .340
93) The probability of the union of two events A and B is the probability that:
a. neither event A happens nor event B happens
b. both events do not happen together
c. both events A and B happen together
d. either event A or event B or both A and B happen
If A and B are mutually exclusive events, with P(A) = .2 and P(B) = .3,
96) The probability of the union of two events A and B is given by:
a. P(A) + P(B) + P(A and B)
b. P(A) + P(B) – P(A and B)
c. P(A) P(A|B)
d. P(A) P(B|A)
97) The probability of the union of two events A and B, that are mutually exclusive, is
given by:
a. P(A) + P(B)
b. P(A) – P(B) + P(A and B)
c. P(A) P(A|B)
d. P(A) P(B|A)
98) 6.16 If A and B are independent events with P(A) = .6 and P(B) = .7, then the
probability that A occurs or B occurs or both occur is:
a. 1.30
b. .88
c. .42
d. .10
99) In a class of 40 students, 10 are management majors. Two students are selected at
random from this class. The probability that both of them are management majors is
approximately:
a. .063
b. .937
c. .250
d. .058
100) The athletic department of ISU has 12 full-time coaches, and four of them are
female. Two coaches are selected at random from this group. The probability that
neither of them is a female is approximately:
a. .091
b. .445
c. .639
d. .424
101) The probability that a physician is a pediatrician is .20. Two physicians are
selected at random. The probability that none of them is a pediatrician is:
a. .04
b. .16
c. .64
d. .80
102) If A and B are mutually exclusive events with P(A) = .30 and P(B) = .40, then
P(A or B) is:
a. .10
b. .12
c. .70
d. d. None of the above answers is correct
103) The probability that an adult possesses a credit card is .70. Two adults are selected
at random. The probability that the first adult possesses a credit card and the second
adult does not possess a credit card is:
a. .57
b. .92
c. .21
d. .35
104) If A and B are independent events with P(A) = .20 and P(B) = .60, then P(A|B) is:
a. .20
b. .60
c. .40
d. .80
105) The probability that a person is a college graduate is .35 and that he/she has high
blood pressure is .12. Assuming that these two events are independent, the probability
that a person selected at random is a college graduate and has high blood pressure is:
a. .455
b. .801
c. .095
d. .042
106) The probability that a corporation made profits in 2001 is .70 and the probability
that a corporation made charitable contributions in 2001 is .25. Assuming that these
two events are independent, the probability that a corporation made profits in 2001
and made charitable contributions in 2001 is:
a. .075
b. .175
c. .525
d. .225
107) If P(A) = .25 and P(B) = .65, then P(A and B) is:
a. .25
b. .40
c. .90
d. cannot be determined from the information given
108) The probability that an employee of a company is a male is .60 and the joint
probability that an employee of this company is a male and single is .18. The
probability that a randomly selected employee of this company is single given he is a
male is:
a. .400
b. .820
c. .300
d. .108
109) The probability that a farmer is in debt is .70. The joint probability that a farmer is
in debt and lives in the Midwest is .28. The probability that a randomly selected
farmer lives in the Midwest given he is in debt is:
a. .196
b. .300
c. .720
d. .400
110) If a coin is tossed three times and a statistician predicts that the probability of
obtaining three heads in a row is .125, which of the following assumptions is
irrelevant to his prediction?
a. The events are dependent
b. The events are independent
c. The coin is unbiased
d. All of the above assumptions are relevant to his prediction
111) The total number of outcomes for three rolls of a die is:
a. 216
b. 36
c. 8
d. 1296
112) A woman owns 12 blouses, seven skirts, and six pairs of shoes. She will randomly
select one blouse, one skirt, and one pair of shoes to wear on a certain day. The total
number of possible outcomes are:
a. 84
b. 504
c. 72
d. 42
113) If P(A) = .84, P(B) =.76 and P(A or B) =.90, then P(A and B) is:
a. 0.64
b. .14
c. .70
d. .83
114) The union of two events A and B represents the outcomes that are:
a. either in A or in B or in both A and B
b. common to both A and B
c. neither in A nor in B
d. not common to both A and B
[115 – 118]One thousand students were asked whether Republicans or Democrats have
better domestic economic policies. The following table gives the two-way classification
of their opinions.
115) If one student is randomly selected from these 1,000 students, the probability that
this student has no opinion is:
a. .046
b. .390
c. .070
d. .400
116) If one student is randomly selected from these 1,000 students, the probability that
this student is a female or thinks that Democrats have better domestic economic
policies is:
a. .940
b. .200
c. .740
d. .400
117) If one student is randomly selected from these 1,000 students, the probability that
this student has no opinion or is a male is:
a. .670
b. .070
c. .600
d. .630
118) If one student is randomly selected from these 1,000 students, the probability that
this student is a male or thinks that Republicans have better domestic economic
policies is:
a. .770
b. .990
c. .390
d. .600
119) If P(A)= .35, P(B) = .45 and P(A and B) =.25, then P(A|B) is:
a. 1.4
b. 1.8
c. .714
d. .556
120) If P(A) = .20, P(B) = .30 and P(A and B) = .06, then events A and B are:
a. dependent events
b. independent events
c. mutually exclusive events
d. complementary events
121) If A and B are mutually exclusive events with P(A) = .70, then P(B):
a. can be any value between 0 and 1
b. can be any value between 0 and .70
c. cannot be larger than .30
d. cannot be determined with the information given
[122 – 124]Three hundred computers manufactured by two companies were inspected for
being good or defective. The following table gives the two-way classification of these
300 computers.
Good Defective
Company A 140 10
Company B 130 20
122) If one computer is selected at random from these 300 computers, the probability
that this computer is good or is made by company B is approximately:
a. .900
b. .433
c. .967
d. .420
123) If one computer is selected at random from these 300 computers, the probability
that this computer is made by company A or is defective is approximately:
a. .567
b. .033
c. .600
d. .820
124) If one computer is selected at random from these 300 computers, the probability
that this computer is good or is made by company A is approximately:
a. .420
b. .067
c. .900
d. .933
125) The probability that a student at a university is a male is .48, that a student is a
business major is .14, and that a student is a male and a business major is .06. The
probability that a randomly selected student from this university is a male or a
business major is:
a) .62
b) .56
c) .68
d) .40
126) The probability that a family has at least one child is .74, that a family owns a
camcorder is .25, and that a family has at least one child and owns a camcorder is .13.
The probability that a randomly selected family has at least one child or owns a
camcorder is:
a. .99
b. .86
c. .87
d. .62
127) 6.29 If A and B are independent events with P(A) = .60 and P(A|B) = .60, then
P(B) is:
a. 1.20
b. .60
c. .36
d. cannot be determined with the information given
128) In a recent survey, forty-five percent of the voters are in favor of limiting the
number of terms for senators and congressmen, 36% are against it, and 19% have no
opinion. If one voter is selected at random, the probability that this voter is either in
favor of limiting the number of terms for senators and congressmen or has no opinion
is:
a. .62
b. .28
c. .64
d. .55
129) State Farm company has a total of 500 male employees. Of them, 125 are single,
280 are married, 65 are either divorced or separated, and 30 are widowers. If one
male employee is selected at random from this company, the probability that this
employee is married or a widower is:
a. .310
b. .375
c. .250
d. .620
130) The probability that a person is a college graduate is .55 and that he/she has high
blood pressure is .20. Assuming that these two events are independent, the probability
that a person selected at random is a college graduate or has high blood pressure is:
a. .11
b. .64
c. .75
d. cannot be calculated from the given information
131) The probability that a corporation made profits in 2001 is .70 and the probability
that a corporation made charitable contributions in 2001 is .25. Assuming that these
two events are independent, the probability that a corporation made profits in 2001 or
made charitable contributions in 2001 is:
a. .775
b. .950
c. .175
d. cannot be calculated from the given information
132) Three football fans are asked whether they think that the St. Louis Rams will
repeat as NFL champions in the 2000–01 season. The possible responses are "Yes" or
"No" ("I Don't Know" is not allowed). The first person asked lives in St. Louis, and
always chooses the Rams to win the championship. Knowing this, how many possible
outcomes are there?
a. 4
b. 8
c. 2
d. 3
133) A coin is tossed three times. One possible outcome is "head, head, head". The
event "two heads, one tail" would be considered a(n):
a. impossible event
b. sure event
c. compound event
d. simple event
134) When rolling a pair of fair dice, what is the probability that the sum of the dice on
one roll will be seven?
a. 1/6
b. 1/12
c. 1/36
d. 5/36
135) A particular shoe factory has two machines. Machine A manufactures shoes for
the left foot, and machine B manufactures shoes for the right foot. Four of 100 shoes
from machine A are found to be defective, and five of 100 shoes from machine B are
found to be defective. What is the probability that the next left shoe and the next right
shoe will both be defective?
a. .09
b. .002
c. .025
d. .2
An experiment is conducted with 50 dogs. Each dog is given a dish of dry dog food and a
dish of canned dog food at the same time, and the food that is eaten first is considered the
"preferred" food. The dogs are classified as small (under 40 lbs.), medium (40–100 lbs.),
and large (over 100 lbs.). The results are tabulated as follows:
136) What is the probability that a dog chosen at random from the group will be large
and will prefer canned food?
a. 6/10
b. 6/37
c. 4/50
d. 6/50
137) Four fair, unweighted dice are rolled. What is the probability that all 4 dice show
the same number?
a. 1/24
b. 1/216
c. 1/1296
d. 1/6
138) A boy is playing an adventure game. At one point, he has to make a decision to go
right or go left. If he goes right, the probability that he will "die" is .30. If he goes left,
the probability of "death" is .40. He has an equal probability of choosing either
direction. What is the probability that he will "die" after making his decision?
a. .12
b. .70
c. .40
d. .35
All 400 employees at an accounting firm in Chicago are asked what size of vehicle they
drive: compact car, mid-size car, large car, or truck. The following table gives a two-way
classification of their responses.
139) If one employee is selected at random, what is the most likely outcome?
a. The employee is a male and drives a mid-size car
b. The employee is a female and drives a mid-size car
c. The employee is a male and doesn't drive a mid-size or large car
d. The employee is a female and doesn't drive a compact or mid-size car
140) A game is played with a fair die and bag of marbles. The player rolls the die, and
if the number on the die is above four, then the player may draw from the bag of
marbles. The player wins if a black marble is drawn from the bag, which contains
seven white marbles and three black marbles. If the number on the die is four or less,
the player loses without drawing from the bag. What is the probability of winning the
game?
a. .33
b. .30
c. .63
d. .10
141) The probability that a randomly selected person from a certain community has
been on the Internet and can point out the location of Guinea on a world map is .08,
and the probability that the person can point out Guinea given that he/she has been on
the Internet is .20. What is the probability that a person in the community has been on
the Internet?
a. .40
b. .016
c. .80
d. 2.50
142) If P(A) = .65, P(B) = .58 and P(A and B) = .76, then P(A or B) is:
a. 1.23
b. .47
c. .18
d. .11
Answer Key