OCR S1 Notes Permutations and Combinations
OCR S1 Notes Permutations and Combinations
Probability
Factorials
An important aspect of life is setting up a password for entry into a computer
network.
Example 1
A 6 letter password can be made using each of the letters P, Q, R, X, Y and Z once.
How many arrangements are there?
Solution
The first letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
Once we have chosen this letter we cannot use it again,
So the second letter can be chosen in 5 ways.
The third letter can be chosen in 4 ways.
The fourth letter can be chosen in 3 ways.
The fifth letter can be chosen in 2 ways.
This leaves us with only 1 letter.
The sixth letter can be chosen in 1 way.
Check that you know how to work out factorials on your calculator.
Some calculators have a ! key; in others it will be found on a menu.
Example 2
A 5 letter password can be made using each of the letters P, Q, R, X, Y and Z as many
times as we like.
How many arrangements are there?
Solution
The first letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
The second letter can also be chosen in 6 ways, as we can repeat the first letter.
The third letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
The fourth letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
The fifth letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
Note that when we can replace the letter (or object) it is not a factorial
problem.
Example 3
A password can be made consisting of 3 letters followed by 3 numbers. The first 3
letters are selected using each of the letters A, T and Z once. The numbers are selected
from 0, 1 and 2, using each of the numbers once.
How many arrangements are there?
Solution
The first letter can be chosen in 3 ways.
Once we have chosen this letter we cannot use it again,
So the second letter can be chosen in 2 ways.
The third letter can be chosen in 1 way.
The first number can be chosen in 3 ways.
Once we have chosen this number we cannot use it again,
So the second number can be chosen in 2 ways.
The third number can be chosen in 1 way.
Note:
1. In general the number of ways of placing n different objects in a line is n!
where n ! n (n 1) (n 2) ..... 3 2 1 .
n must be a positive integer in this context.
3. 1! = 1
But also 0! = 1.
Make sure that you memorise this!
Example 4
Simplify the following:
6!
(i)
3!
(ii) 6! + 4! Note the 3 2 1
can be cancelled
Solution
6! 6 5 4 3 2 1
(i) 6 5 4 120
3! 3 2 1
Note the common factor
(ii) 6! 4! (6 5 4 3 2 1) (4 3 2 1) of (4 3 2 1)
30(4 3 2 1) (4 3 2 1)
31(4 3 2 1)
31 4!
Do not worry if you have problems on this section. These extra examples are
to help you get through Exercise 5A, say questions 1 and 5.
Permutations
Example 5
A 6 letter password can be made using any of the letters L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, X, Y
and Z once.
How many arrangements are there?
Solution
The first letter can be chosen in 10 ways.
Once we have chosen this letter we cannot use it again,
So the second letter can be chosen in 9 ways.
The third letter can be chosen in 8 ways.
The fourth letter can be chosen in 7 ways.
The fifth letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
The sixth letter can be chosen in 5 ways.
1
So the chance somebody will access the site using your password is:
151200
Example 6
A 5 letter password can be made using any of the letters A, B, C, D, E, F and G once.
How many arrangements are there?
Solution
The first letter can be chosen in 7 ways.
Once we have chosen this letter we cannot use it again,
So the second letter can be chosen in 6 ways.
The third letter can be chosen in 5 ways.
The fourth letter can be chosen in 4 ways.
The fifth letter can be chosen in 3 ways.
1
So the chance somebody will access the site using your password is:
2520
Example 7
A password can be made consisting of 3 letters followed by 3 numbers. The first 3
letters are selected using any of the letters A, B, C, .Y and Z once. The numbers are
selected using any of the numbers 0, 1, 2, .8, and 9 once.
How many arrangements are there?
Solution:
The letters can be chosen in 26P3 ways.
26! 26!
26
P3 = or
23! (26 3)!
Altogether we can arrange the letters and numbers in 26P3 10P3 = 11232000 ways.
Combinations
It is often the case that we are not concerned with the order in which items are
chosen, only which ones are picked.
Example 8
A six a-side football team is to be selected from the players L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, X, Y
and Z.
How many possible selections are there? Note in this case we are interested in the 6
players selected, not the order.
A team featuring L, M, N, X, Y and Z, is the
same as the team X, Y, Z, L, M and N.
Solution
If the order mattered, the number of arrangements would be 10P6
However, as the order does not matter we have to work out the number of repeated
selections.
From the earlier section on factorials, we remember that 6 objects can be arranged in
6! ways. So this means that we need to divide by 6!
Example 9
4 representatives are chosen from a teaching group consisting of 12 boys and 8 girls.
(i) Calculate the total number of ways they can be chosen.
(ii) Calculate the number of ways of getting each of these selections:
- 4 boys and 0 girls
- 3 boys and 1 girl
- 2 boys and 2 girls
- 1 boy and 3 girls
- 4 girls.
Solution
This is a combination problem as we are not interested in the order of selection.
(i) Choosing 4 students from the group of 20 students can be done in:
20
ways = 4845 ways.
4
12
(ii) 4 boys and 0 girls: Selecting 4 boys from 12 is
4
12
Number of selections = = 495
4
12
3 boys and 1 girl: Selecting 3 boys from 12 is
3
8
Selecting 1 girl from 8 is
1
12 8
Number of selections = = 1760
3 1
12
2 boys and 2 girls: Selecting 2 boys from 12 is
2
8
Selecting 2 girls from 8 is
2
12 8
Number of selections = = 1848
2 2
12
1 boy and 3 girls: Selecting 1 boy from 12 is
1
8
Selecting 3 girls from 8 is
3
12 8
Number of selections = = 672
1 3
8
4 girls and 0 boys: Selecting 4 girls from 8 is
4
8
Number of selections = = 70
4
Check: Total number of selections is: 495+ 1760 + 1848 + 672 +70 = 4845
Example 10
I have a box of chocolates with 10 different chocolates left in it. Of these, there are 6
which I particularly like. However, I intend to offer my three friends one chocolate
each before I eat the rest. How many different selections of chocolates can I be left
with after my friends have chosen?
Assuming my friends choose at random, what is the most likely outcome, and what is
the probability of that outcome?
Solution
I start with 10 chocolates.
I give one to each of my 3 friends.
I am left with 7 chocolates.
10
The number of selections left is: 7 = 120
From these 7 chocolates, if I am left with 5 chocolates that I particularly like then I
must also be left with 2 that I do not like.
6
5 chocolates from the 6 that I like can be selected in: = 6 ways
5
4
2 chocolates from the 4 that I do not like can be selected in: = 6 ways
2
6 6 = 36 ways, as required.
(i) From these 7 chocolates, if I am left with 6 chocolates that I particularly like,
then I must also be left with 1 that I do not like.
6
6 chocolates from the 6 that I like can be selected in: = 1 way
6
4
1 chocolate from the 4 that I do not like can be selected in: = 4 ways
1
1 4 = 4 ways
(ii) From these 7 chocolates, if I am left with 4 chocolates that I particularly like,
then I must also be left with 3 that I do not like.
6
4 chocolates from the 6 that I like can be selected in: = 15 ways
4
4
3 chocolates from the 4 that I do not like can be selected in: = 4 ways
3
15 4 = 60 ways
(iii) From these 7 chocolates, if I am left with 3 chocolates that I particularly like,
then I must also be left with 4 that I do not like.
6
3 chocolates from the 6 that I like can be selected in: = 20 ways
3
4
4 chocolates from the 4 that I do not like can be selected in: = 1 way
4
20 1 = 20 ways
The most likely outcome is that I am left with 4 chocolates that I particularly like.
With 7 chocolates left I can be left with 6, 5, 4 or 3 which I like, as there are 4 which I
do not like.
4 + 36 + 60 + 20 = 120 selections.
60 1
The probability that I get 4 sweets that I like
120 2