Counting

Chapter 6

With Question/Answer
Animations

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Chapter Summary
The Basics of Counting
The Pigeonhole Principle
Permutations and Combinations
Binomial Coefficients and Identities
Generalized Permutations and Combinations
Generating Permutations and Combinations
(not yet included in overheads)
The Basics of Counting
Section 6.1
Section Summary
The Product Rule
The Sum Rule
The Subtraction Rule
The Division Rule
Examples, Examples, and Examples
Tree Diagrams
Basic Counting Principles: The Product
Rule
The Product Rule: A procedure can be
broken down into a sequence of two tasks.
There are n1 ways to do the first task and n2
ways to do the second task. Then there are
n1∙n2 ways to do the procedure.

Example: How many bit strings of length

seven are there?

either a 0 or a 1, the answer is 27 = 128.

Solution: Since each of the seven bits is
The Product Rule
Example: How many different license plates
can be made if each plate contains a
sequence of three uppercase English letters
followed by three digits?

there are 26 ∙ 26 ∙ 26 ∙ 10 ∙ 10 ∙ 10 =
Solution: By the product rule,

17,576,000 different possible license plates.

Counting Functions
Counting Functions: How many functions are there from a
set with m elements to a set with n elements?
Solution: Since a function represents a choice of one of the n

domain, the product rule tells us that there are n ∙ n ∙ ∙ ∙ n =

elements of the codomain for each of the m elements in the

nm such functions.

Counting One-to-One Functions: How many one-to-one

functions are there from a set with m elements to one with n
elements?
Solution: Suppose the elements in the domain are
a1, a2,…, am. There are n ways to choose the value of a1 and
n−1 ways to choose a2, etc. The product rule tells us that there
are n(n−1) (n−2)∙∙∙(n−m +1) such functions.
Telephone Numbering Plan
number consists of 10 digits, consisting of a three-digit area code, a three-digit
Example: The North American numbering plan (NANP) specifies that a telephone

office code, and a four-digit station code. There are some restrictions on the digits.
 Let X denote a digit from 0 through 9.
 Let N denote a digit from 2 through 9.
 Let Y denote a digit that is 0 or 1.
 In the old plan (in use in the 1960s) the format was NYX-NNX-XXX.
 In the new plan, the format is NXX-NXX-XXX.

How many different telephone numbers are possible under the old plan and the
new plan?

Solution: Use the Product Rule.

 There are 8 ∙2 ∙10 = 160 area codes with the format NYX.
 There are 8 ∙10 ∙10 = 800 area codes with the format NXX.
 There are 8 ∙8 ∙10 = 640 office codes with the format NNX.
 There are 10 ∙10 ∙10 ∙10 = 10,000 station codes with the format XXXX.

Number of old plan telephone numbers: 160 ∙640 ∙10,000 = 1,024,000,000.

Number of new plan telephone numbers: 800 ∙800 ∙10,000 = 6,400,000,000.
Counting Subsets of a Finite Set
Counting Subsets of a Finite Set: Use the product

finite set S is 2|S|. (In Section 5.1, mathematical

rule to show that the number of different subsets of a

induction was used to prove this same result.)

Solution: When the elements of S are listed in an
arbitrary order, there is a one-to-one correspondence

the ith element is in the subset, the bit string has a 1 in

between subsets of S and bit strings of length |S|. When

the ith position and a 0 otherwise.

By the product rule, there are 2|S| such bit strings, and
therefore 2|S| subsets.
Product Rule in Terms of Sets
If A1, A2, … , Am are finite sets, then the
number of elements in the Cartesian product
of these sets is the product of the number of
elements of each set.

Cartesian product A1 ⨉ A2 ⨉ ∙∙∙ ⨉ Am is

The task of choosing an element in the

done by choosing an element in A1, an

element in A2 , …, and an element in Am.
|A1 ⨉ A2 ⨉ ∙∙∙ ⨉ Am |= |A1| ∙ |A2| ∙ ∙∙∙ ∙ |Am|.
By the product rule, it follows that:
DNA and Genomes
 A gene is a segment of a DNA molecule that encodes a particular
protein and the entirety of genetic information of an organism is
called its genome.
 DNA molecules consist of two strands of blocks known as
nucleotides. Each nucleotide is composed of bases: adenine (A),

 The DNA of bacteria has between 105 and 107 links (one of the
cytosine (C), guanine (G), or thymine (T).

four bases). Mammals have between 108 and 1010 links. So, by the
product rule there are at least 4105 different sequences of bases in
the DNA of bacteria and 4108 different sequences of bases in the

 The human genome includes approximately 23,000 genes, each

DNA of mammals.

with 1,000 or more links.

 Biologists, mathematicians, and computer scientists all work on
determining the DNA sequence (genome) of different organisms.
Basic Counting Principles: The Sum Rule
The Sum Rule: If a task can be done either in one of n1
ways or in one of n2, where none of the set of n1 ways is
the same as any of the n2 ways, then there are n1 + n2
ways to do the task.
Example: The mathematics department must choose
either a student or a faculty member as a representative

for this representative if there are 37 members of the

for a university committee. How many choices are there

mathematics faculty and 83 mathematics majors and no

one is both a faculty member and a student.

37 + 83 = 120 possible ways to pick a

Solution: By the sum rule it follows that there are

representative.
The Sum Rule in terms of sets.
The sum rule can be phrased in terms of sets.
|A ∪ B|= |A| + |B| as long as A and B are
disjoint sets.
Or more generally,

|A1 ∪ A2 ∪ ∙∙∙ ∪ Am |= |A1| + |A2| + ∙∙∙ + |Am|

when Ai ∩ Aj = ∅ for all i, j.
The case where the sets have elements in
common will be discussed when we consider the
subtraction rule and taken up fully in Chapter 8.
Combining the Sum and Product Rule
Example: Suppose statement labels in a
programming language can be either a single
letter or a letter followed by a digit. Find the
number of possible labels.

26 + 26 ∙ 10 = 286
Solution: Use the product rule.
Counting Passwords
 Combining the sum and product rule allows us to solve more complex problems.
Example: Each user on a computer system has a password, which is six to eight
characters long, where each character is an uppercase letter or a digit. Each password
must contain at least one digit. How many possible passwords are there?

Solution: Let P be the total number of passwords, and let P6, P7, and P8 be the
passwords of length 6, 7, and 8.
 By the sum rule P = P6 + P7 +P8.
 To find each of P6, P7, and P8 , we find the number of passwords of the specified length
composed of letters and digits and subtract the number composed only of letters. We find
that:

P6 = 366 − 266 =2,176,782,336 − 308,915,776 =1,867,866,560.

P7 = 367 − 267 =
78,364,164,096 − 8,031,810,176 = 70,332,353,920.
P8 = 368 − 268 =
2,821,109,907,456 − 208,827,064,576 =2,612,282,842,880.

Consequently, P = P6 + P7 +P8 = 2,684,483,063,360.

Internet Addresses
 Version 4 of the Internet Protocol (IPv4) uses 32 bits.

 Class A Addresses: used for the largest networks, a 0,followed by a 7-

bit netid and a 24-bit hostid.
 Class B Addresses: used for the medium-sized networks, a 10,followed
by a 14-bit netid and a 16-bit hostid.
 Class C Addresses: used for the smallest networks, a 110,followed by a
21-bit netid and a 8-bit hostid.
 Neither Class D nor Class E addresses are assigned as the address of a

 1111111 is not available as the netid of a Class A network.

computer on the internet. Only Classes A, B, and C are available.

 Hostids consisting of all 0s and all 1s are not available in any network.
Counting Internet Addresses
Example: How many different IPv4 addresses are available for
computers on the internet?
Solution: Use both the sum and the product rule. Let x be the number
of available addresses, and let xA, xB, and xC denote the number of
addresses for the respective classes.
 To find, xA: 27 − 1 = 127 netids. 224 − 2 = 16,777,214 hostids.
xA = 127∙ 16,777,214 = 2,130,706,178.
 To find, xB: 214 = 16,384 netids. 216 − 2 = 16,534 hostids.
xB = 16,384 ∙ 16, 534 = 1,073,709,056.
 To find, xC: 221 = 2,097,152 netids. 28 − 2 = 254 hostids.
xC = 2,097,152 ∙ 254 = 532,676,608.
 Hence, the total number of available IPv4 addresses is
x = xA + xB + xC
= 2,130,706,178 + 1,073,709,056 + 532,676,608
= 3, 737,091,842.
Not Enough Today !!
The newer IPv6 protocol solves the
problem of too few addresses.
Basic Counting Principles: Subtraction Rule
Subtraction Rule: If a task can be done
either in one of n1 ways or in one of n2 ways,

is n1 + n2 minus the number of ways to do

then the total number of ways to do the task

the task that are common to the two different

ways.
Also known as, the principle of inclusion-
exclusion:
Counting Bit Strings
either start with a 1 bit or end with the two bits
Example: How many bit strings of length eight

00?
Solution: Use the subtraction rule.

that start with a 1 bit: 27 = 128

Number of bit strings of length eight

that end with bits 00: 26 = 64

Number of bit strings of length eight

that start with a 1 bit and end with bits 00 : 25

Number of bit strings of length eight

= 32
Hence, the number is 128 + 64 − 32 = 160.
Basic Counting Principles: Division Rule
Division Rule: There are n/d ways to do a task if it can be done using a procedure
that can be carried out in n ways, and for every way w, exactly d of the n ways
correspond to way w.
 Restated in terms of sets: If the finite set A is the union of n pairwise disjoint
subsets each with d elements, then n = |A|/d.

for every value y ∈ B there are exactly d values x ∈ A such that f(x) = y, then |B| =
 In terms of functions: If f is a function from A to B, where both are finite sets, and

|A|/d.

Example: How many ways are there to seat four people around a circular table,
where two seatings are considered the same when each person has the same left

Solution: Number the seats around the table from 1 to 4 proceeding clockwise.
and right neighbor?

There are four ways to select the person for seat 1, 3 for seat 2, 2, for seat 3, and
one way for seat 4. Thus there are 4! = 24 ways to order the four people. But since

for every choice for seat 1, we get the same seating.

two seatings are the same when each person has the same left and right neighbor,

Therefore, by the division rule, there are 24/4 = 6 different seating arrangements.
Tree Diagrams
 Tree Diagrams: We can solve many counting problems through the
use of tree diagrams, where a branch represents a possible choice
and the leaves represent possible outcomes.
 Example: Suppose that “I Love Discrete Math” T-shirts come in five
different sizes: S,M,L,XL, and XXL. Each size comes in four colors
(white, red, green, and black), except XL, which comes only in red,
green, and black, and XXL, which comes only in green and black.
What is the minimum number of shirts that the campus book store
needs to stock to have one of each size and color available?
 Solution: Draw the tree diagram.

 The store must stock 17 T-shirts.

The Pigeonhole Principle
Section 6.2
Section Summary
The Pigeonhole Principle
The Generalized Pigeonhole Principle
The Pigeonhole Principle
 If a flock of 20 pigeons roosts in a set of 19 pigeonholes, one
of the pigeonholes must have more than 1 pigeon.

Pigeonhole Principle: If k is a positive integer and k + 1

objects are placed into k boxes, then at least one box contains
two or more objects.
Proof: We use a proof by contraposition. Suppose none of
the k boxes has more than one object. Then the total number

that we have k + 1 objects.

of objects would be at most k. This contradicts the statement
The Pigeonhole Principle
Corollary 1: A function f from a set with k +
1 elements to a set with k elements is not
one-to-one.
Proof: Use the pigeonhole principle.
Create a box for each element y in the
codomain of f .
Put in the box for y all of the elements x from

Because there are k + 1 elements and only k

the domain such that f(x) = y.

boxes, at least one box has two or more

elements.
Hence, f can’t be one-to-one.
Pigeonhole Principle
Example: Among any group of 367 people, there must be at
least two with the same birthday, because there are only 366
possible birthdays.

multiple of n that has only 0s and 1s in its decimal expansion.

Example (optional): Show that for every integer n there is a

Solution: Let n be a positive integer. Consider the n + 1

integers 1, 11, 111, …., 11…1 (where the last has n + 1 1s).

n. By the pigeonhole principle, when each of the n + 1 integers

There are n possible remainders when an integer is divided by

is divided by n, at least two must have the same remainder.

multiple of n that has only 0s and 1s in its decimal expansion.

Subtract the smaller from the larger and the result is a
The Generalized Pigeonhole Principle
The Generalized Pigeonhole Principle: If N objects are

containing at least ⌈N/k⌉ objects.

placed into k boxes, then there is at least one box

none of the boxes contains more than ⌈N/k⌉ − 1 objects.

Proof: We use a proof by contraposition. Suppose that

Then the total number of objects is at most

where the inequality ⌈N/k⌉ < ⌈N/k⌉ + 1 has been used. This
is a contradiction because there are a total of n objects.

Example: Among 100 people there are at least

⌈100/12⌉ = 9 who were born in the same month.
The Generalized Pigeonhole Principle
standard deck of 52 cards to guarantee that at least three
Example: a) How many cards must be selected from a

cards of the same suit are chosen?

b) How many must be selected to guarantee that at least three
hearts are selected?
Solution: a) We assume four boxes; one for each suit. Using

at least ⌈N/4⌉ cards. At least three cards of one suit are

the generalized pigeonhole principle, at least one box contains

selected if ⌈N/4⌉ ≥3. The smallest integer N such that ⌈N/4⌉ ≥3

N = 2 ∙ 4 + 1 = 9.
b) A deck contains 13 hearts and 39 cards which are not
is

hearts. So, if we select 41 cards, we may have 39 cards which

are not hearts along with 2 hearts. However, when we select
42 cards, we must have at least three hearts. (Note that the
generalized pigeonhole principle is not used here.)
Permutations and
Combinations
Section 6.3
Section Summary
Permutations
Combinations
Combinatorial Proofs
Permutations
Definition: A permutation of a set of distinct
objects is an ordered arrangement of these objects.
An ordered arrangement of r elements of a set is
called an r-permuation.
Example: Let S = {1,2,3}.
The ordered arrangement 3,1,2 is a permutation of S.
The ordered arrangement 3,2 is a 2-permutation of S.
The number of r-permuatations of a set with n
elements is denoted by P(n,r).
The 2-permutations of S = {1,2,3} are 1,2; 1,3; 2,1;
2,3; 3,1; and 3,2. Hence, P(3,2) = 6.
A Formula for the Number of Permutations
Theorem 1: If n is a positive integer and r is an integer
1 ≤ r ≤ n, then there are
P(n, r) = n(n − 1)(n − 2) ∙∙∙ (n − r + 1)
with

r-permutations of a set with n distinct elements.

chosen in n ways. The second in n − 1 ways, and so on

Proof: Use the product rule. The first element can be

until there are (n − ( r − 1)) ways to choose the last

 Note that P(n,0) = 1, since there is only one way to order

element.

Corollary 1: If n and r are integers with 1 ≤ r ≤ n, then

zero elements.
Solving Counting Problems by Counting
Permutations
Example: How many ways are there to

winner, and a third-prize winner from 100

select a first-prize winner, a second prize

different people who have entered a contest?

P(100,3) = 100 ∙ 99 ∙ 98 = 970,200

Solution:
Solving Counting Problems by Counting
Permutations (continued)
Example: Suppose that a saleswoman has to visit
eight different cities. She must begin her trip in a
specified city, but she can visit the other seven cities
in any order she wishes. How many possible orders
can the saleswoman use when visiting these cities?

Solution: The first city is chosen, and the rest are

7! = 7 ∙ 6 ∙ 5 ∙ 4 ∙ 3 ∙ 2 ∙ 1 = 5040
ordered arbitrarily. Hence the orders are:

If she wants to find the tour with the shortest path

that visits all the cities, she must consider 5040
paths!
Solving Counting Problems by Counting
Permutations (continued)
Example: How many permutations of the
letters ABCDEFGH contain the string ABC ?

Solution: We solve this problem by counting

the permutations of six objects, ABC, D, E, F,
G, and H.

6! = 6 ∙ 5 ∙ 4 ∙ 3 ∙ 2 ∙ 1 = 720
Combinations
Definition: An r-combination of elements of a set is an
unordered selection of r elements from the set. Thus, an
r-combination is simply a subset of the set with r elements.
The number of r-combinations of a set with n distinct
elements is denoted by C(n, r). The notation is also

notation again in the binomial theorem in Section 6.4.)

used and is called a binomial coefficient. (We will see the

3-combination from S. It is the same as {d, c, a} since the

Example: Let S be the set {a, b, c, d}. Then {a, c, d} is a

C(4,2) = 6 because the 2-combinations of {a, b, c, d} are

order listed does not matter.

the six subsets {a, b}, {a, c}, {a, d}, {b, c}, {b, d}, and
{c, d}.
Combinations
Theorem 2: The number of r-combinations
of a set with n elements, where n ≥ r ≥ 0,
equals

Proof: By the product rule P(n, r) = C(n,r) ∙

P(r,r). Therefore,
Combinations
dealt from a standard deck of 52 cards? Also, how many
Example: How many poker hands of five cards can be

ways are there to select 47 cards from a deck of 52

cards?
Solution: Since the order in which the cards are dealt
does not matter, the number of five card hands is:

The different ways to select 47 cards from 52 is

This is a special case of a general result. →

Combinations
Corollary 2: Let n and r be nonnegative
integers with r ≤ n. Then C(n, r) = C(n, n −

Proof: From Theorem 2, it follows that

r).

and

Hence, C(n, r) = C(n, n − r).

manipulation. →
This result can be proved without using algebraic
Combinatorial Proofs
Definition 1: A combinatorial proof of an
identity is a proof that uses one of the
following methods.
A double counting proof uses counting
arguments to prove that both sides of an
identity count the same objects, but in different
ways.
A bijective proof shows that there is a
bijection between the sets of objects counted
by the two sides of the identity.
Combinatorial Proofs
Here are two combinatorial proofs that
C(n, r) = C(n, n − r)
when r and n are nonnegative integers with r < n:
 Bijective Proof: Suppose that S is a set with n elements. The
function that maps a subset A of S to is a bijection

with n − r elements. Since there is a bijection between the

between the subsets of S with r elements and the subsets

two sets, they must have the same number of elements.

 Double Counting Proof: By definition the number of subsets
of S with r elements is C(n, r). Each subset A of S can also be
described by specifying which elements are not in A, i.e.,

S with r elements has n − r elements, there are also C(n, n −

those which are in . Since the complement of a subset of

r) subsets of S with r elements.

Combinations
from a 10-member tennis team to make a trip to a match
Example: How many ways are there to select five players

Solution: By Theorem 2, the number of combinations is

at another school.

Example: A group of 30 people have been trained as

astronauts to go on the first mission to Mars. How many
ways are there to select a crew of six people to go on this

Solution: By Theorem 2, the number of possible crews is

mission?
Binomial Coefficients and
Identities
Section 6.4
Section Summary
The Binomial Theorem
Pascal’s Identity and Triangle
Other Identities Involving Binomial
Coefficients (not currently included in
overheads)
Powers of Binomial Expressions
Definition: A binomial expression is the sum of two terms, such as x + y. (More
generally, these terms can be products of constants and variables.)
 We can use counting principles to find the coefficients in the expansion of ( x + y)n

To illustrate this idea, we first look at the process of expanding (x + y)3.

where n is a positive integer.

 (x + y) (x + y) (x + y) expands into a sum of terms that are the product of a term

Terms of the form x3, x2y, x y2, y3 arise. The question is what are the coefficients?
from each of the three sums.

 To obtain x3 , an x must be chosen from each of the sums. There is only one way to do
this. So, the coefficient of x3 is 1.
 To obtain x2y, an x must be chosen from two of the sums and a y from the other. There
are ways to do this and so the coefficient of x2y is 3.
 To obtain xy2, an x must be chosen from of the sums and a y from the other two . There
are ways to do this and so the coefficient of xy2 is 3.
 To obtain y3 , a y must be chosen from each of the sums. There is only one way to do this.
So, the coefficient of y3 is 1.
 We have used a counting argument to show that (x + y)3 = x3 + 3x2y + 3x y2 + y3 .
 Next we present the binomial theorem gives the coefficients of the terms in the
expansion of (x + y)n .
Binomial Theorem
Binomial Theorem: Let x and y be
variables, and n a nonnegative integer. Then:

Proof: We use combinatorial reasoning . The

terms in the expansion of (x + y)n are of the
form xn−jyj for j = 0,1,2,…,n. To
form the term xn−jyj, it is necessary to choose
n−j xs from the n sums. Therefore, the
coefficient of xn−jyj is which equals
.
Using the Binomial Theorem
Example: What is the coefficient of x12y13 in
the expansion of (2x − 3y)25?
Solution: We view the expression as (2x +
(−3y))25. By the binomial theorem

Consequently, the coefficient of x12y13 in the

expansion is obtained when j = 13.
A Useful Identity
Corollary 1: With n ≥0,

Proof (using binomial theorem): With x = 1 and y = 1, from

the binomial theorem we see that:

Proof (combinatorial): Consider the subsets of a set with n

elements. There are subsets with zero elements, with
one element, with two elements, …, and with n
elements. Therefore the total is

Since, we know that a set with n elements has 2n subsets, we

conclude:
 Blaise
Pascal
(1623-1662)

Pascal’s Identity
Pascal’s Identity: If n and k are integers with n ≥ k ≥ 0, then

Proof (combinatorial): Let T be a set where |T| = n + 1, a ∊T,

and S = T − {a}. There are subsets of T containing k
elements. Each of these subsets either:
 contains a with k − 1 other elements, or
 contains k elements of S and not a.

There are
subsets of k elements that contain a, since there are
subsets of k − 1 elements of S,


subsets of k elements of T that do not contain a, because

there are subsets of k elements of S.


Hence, 19 for an
See Exercise

algebraic
proof.
 Pascal’s Triangle
The nth row in
the triangle
consists of the
binomial
coefficients

k = 0,1,….,n.
,

By Pascal’s identity, adding two adjacent bionomial coefficients

results is the binomial coefficient in the next row between these
two coefficients.
Generalized Permutations
and Combinations
Section 6.5
Section Summary
Permutations with Repetition
Combinations with Repetition
Permutations with Indistinguishable Objects
Distributing Objects into Boxes
Permutations with Repetition
Theorem 1: The number of r-permutations of a set of n
objects with repetition allowed is nr.
Proof: There are n ways to select an element of the
set for each of the r positions in the r-permutation
when repetition is allowed. Hence, by the product rule
there are nr r-permutations with repetition.

Example: How many strings of length r can be formed

from the uppercase letters of the English alphabet?

the number of r-permutations of a set with 26

Solution: The number of such strings is 26r, which is

elements.
Combinations with Repetition
Example: How many ways are there to
select five bills from a box containing at least
five of each of the following denominations:
$1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100?
Solution: Place the selected bills in the
appropriate position of a cash box illustrated
below:

→
continued
Combinations with Repetition
 Some possible ways of
placing the five bills:

 The number of ways to select five bills corresponds to the

number of ways to arrange six bars and five stars in a row.
 This is the number of unordered selections of 5 objects from a
set of 11. Hence, there are

ways to choose five bills with seven types of bills.

Combinations with Repetition
Theorem 2: The number 0f r-combinations from a set with
n elements when repetition of elements is allowed is
C(n + r – 1,r) = C(n + r – 1, n –1).
Proof: Each r-combination of a set with n elements with
repetition allowed can be represented by a list of n –1 bars
and r stars. The bars mark the n cells containing a star for
each time the ith element of the set occurs in the
combination.

The number of such lists is C(n + r – 1, r), because each list

is a choice of the r positions to place the stars, from the
total of n + r – 1 positions to place the stars and the
bars. This is also equal to C(n + r – 1, n –1), which is the
number of ways to place the n –1 bars.
Combinations with Repetition
x1 + x2 + x3 = 11
Example: How many solutions does the equation

have, where x1 , x2 and x3 are nonnegative

integers?

select 11 items from a set with three elements; x1

Solution: Each solution corresponds to a way to

elements of type one, x2 of type two, and x3 of type

By Theorem 2 it follows that there are

three.

solutions.
Combinations with Repetition
Example: Suppose that a cookie shop has
four different kinds of cookies. How many
different ways can six cookies be chosen?

cookies is the number of 6-combinations of a

Solution: The number of ways to choose six

set with four elements. By Theorem 2

is the number of ways to choose six cookies

from the four kinds.
Summarizing the Formulas for Counting Permutations
and Combinations with and without Repetition
Permutations with Indistinguishable
Objects
Example: How many different strings can be made by
reordering the letters of the word SUCCESS.
Solution: There are seven possible positions for the three Ss,
two Cs, one U, and one E.
 The three Ss can be placed in C(7,3) different ways, leaving four
positions free.
 The two Cs can be placed in C(4,2) different ways, leaving two
positions free.
 The U can be placed in C(2,1) different ways, leaving one position
free.
 The E can be placed in C(1,1) way.

By the product rule, the number of different strings is:

The reasoning can be generalized to the following theorem. →

Permutations with Indistinguishable
Objects
Theorem 3: The number of different permutations of n objects, where there are
n1 indistinguishable objects of type 1, n2 indistinguishable objects of
type 2, …., and nk indistinguishable objects of type k, is:

C(n, n1 ) C(n − n1, n2 ) ∙∙∙ C(n − n1 − n2 − ∙∙∙ − nk, nk) since:

Proof: By the product rule the total number of permutations is:

n − n1 positions.
 The n1 objects of type one can be placed in the n positions in C(n, n1 ) ways, leaving

− n1 positions in
C(n − n1, n2 ) ways, leaving n − n1 − n2 positions.
 Then the n2 objects of type two can be placed in the n

C(n − n1 − n2 − ∙∙∙ − nk, nk) ways.

 Continue in this fashion, until nk objects of type k are placed in

The product can be manipulated into the desired result as follows:

Distributing Objects into Boxes
Many counting problems can be solved by
counting the ways objects can be placed in
boxes.
The objects may be either different from each
other (distinguishable) or identical
(indistinguishable).
The boxes may be labeled (distinguishable) or
unlabeled (indistinguishable).
Distributing Objects into Boxes
 Distinguishable objects and distinguishable boxes.
 There are n!/(n1!n2! ∙∙∙nk!) ways to distribute n distinguishable

 (See Exercises 47 and 48 for two different proofs.)

objects into k distinguishable boxes.

 Example: There are 52!/(5!5!5!5!32!) ways to distribute hands of 5

cards each to four players.
 Indistinguishable objects and distinguishable boxes.
 There are C(n + r − 1, n − 1) ways to place r indistinguishable
objects into n distinguishable boxes.
 Proof based on one-to-one correspondence between
n-combinations from a set with k-elements when repetition is
allowed and the ways to place n indistinguishable objects into k

 Example: There are C(8 + 10 − 1, 10) = C(17,10) = 19,448 ways

distinguishable boxes.

to place 10 indistinguishable objects into 8 distinguishable boxes.

Distributing Objects into Boxes
 Distinguishable objects and indistinguishable boxes.
 Example: There are 14 ways to put four employees into three
indistinguishable offices (see Example 10).
 There is no simple closed formula for the number of ways to
distribute n distinguishable objects into j indistinguishable boxes.
 See the text for a formula involving Stirling numbers of the
second kind.
 Indistinguishable objects and indistinguishable boxes.
 Example: There are 9 ways to pack six copies of the same book
into four identical boxes (see Example 11).
 The number of ways of distributing n indistinguishable objects
into k indistinguishable boxes equals pk(n), the number of ways to
write n as the sum of at most k positive integers in increasing
order.
 No simple closed formula exists for this number.