Combining probabilities

  • Fixing the Odds
    problem

    Fixing the odds

    Age
    14 to 16
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star filled star
    You have two bags, four red balls and four white balls. You must put all the balls in the bags although you are allowed to have one bag empty. How should you distribute the balls between the two bags so as to make the probability of choosing a red ball as small as possible and what will the probability be in that case?
  • Win or Lose?
    problem

    Win or lose?

    Age
    14 to 16
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star empty star
    A gambler bets half the money in his pocket on the toss of a coin, winning an equal amount for a head and losing his money if the result is a tail. After 2n plays he has won exactly n times. Has he more money than he started with?
  • Marbles and Bags
    problem

    Marbles and bags

    Age
    14 to 16
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star empty star
    Two bags contain different numbers of red and blue marbles. A marble is removed from one of the bags. The marble is blue. What is the probability that it was removed from bag A?
  • Gambling at Monte Carlo
    problem

    Gambling at Monte Carlo

    Age
    14 to 16
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star filled star

    A man went to Monte Carlo to try and make his fortune. Is his strategy a winning one?

  • Snooker Frames
    problem

    Snooker frames

    Age
    16 to 18
    Challenge level
    filled star empty star empty star
    It is believed that weaker snooker players have a better chance of winning matches over eleven frames (i.e. first to win 6 frames) than they do over fifteen frames. Is this true?
  • Snooker
    problem

    Snooker

    Age
    16 to 18
    Challenge level
    filled star empty star empty star
    A player has probability 0.4 of winning a single game. What is his probability of winning a 'best of 15 games' tournament?
  • Squash
    problem

    Squash

    Age
    16 to 18
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star filled star
    If the score is 8-8 do I have more chance of winning if the winner is the first to reach 9 points or the first to reach 10 points?
  • Knock-out
    problem

    Knock-out

    Age
    16 to 18
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star empty star
    Before a knockout tournament with 2^n players I pick two players. What is the probability that they have to play against each other at some point in the tournament?
  • Taking Chances Extended
    article

    Taking chances extended

    This article, for students and teachers, is mainly about probability, the mathematical way of looking at random chance.
  • Placeholder: several colourful numbers
    problem

    Odd dice

    Age
    14 to 16
    Challenge level
    filled star filled star empty star
    These strange dice are rolled. What is the probability that the sum obtained is an odd number?