4/28/23, 11:20 PM Venn Diagrams (3.1.

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Edexcel A Level Maths: Statistics

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Home / A Level / Maths: Statistics / Edexcel / Revision Notes / 3. Probability / 3.1 Basic Probability / 3.1.2 Venn Diagrams

3.1.2 Venn Diagrams 1. STATISTICAL SAMPLING

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2. DATA PRESENTATION &
INTERPRETATION

Venn Diagrams
3. PROBABILITY
What is a Venn diagram?
A Venn diagram is a way to illustrate events from an experiment and are
particularly useful when there is an overlap (or lack of) between possible 3.1 Basic Probability
outcomes
A Venn diagram consists of
3.1.1 Calculating Probabilities
a rectangle representing the sample space & Events
a bubble (usually drawn as a circle/ellipse/oval) for each event
Bubbles may or may not overlap depending on which outcomes are
3.1.2 Venn Diagrams
shared between events
Bubble(s) is not a technical term but we like it!

3.1.3 Tree Diagrams

How are Venn diagrams labelled and what do the numbers inside mean?
The rectangle is usually labelled with an S – as it represents the sample space
3.2 Further Probability (A
(all possible outcomes from the experiment) Level only)
It is often referred to as the Universal Set and is commonly labelled with
S , U , ξ (the Greek lower case letter Xi) or ℰ (Kunstler script font) 4. STATISTICAL
There is no standardised symbol used for this purpose DISTRIBUTIONS
Bubbles are labelled with their event name (A, B, etc)
The numbers inside a Venn diagram (there should be one in each region) will
5. HYPOTHESIS TESTING
represent either a frequency or a probability
In the case of probabilities being shown, all values should total 1

6. LARGE DATA SET

What do the different regions and bubbles overlapping mean on a Venn

diagram?
This will depend on how many events there are and how the outcomes overlap
Venn diagrams show ‘AND’ and ‘OR’ statements easily
Venn diagrams also instantly show mutually exclusive events
Independence can be deduced from the probabilities involved

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How do I solve probability problems involving Venn diagrams?

Draw, or add to a given Venn diagram, filling in as many values as possible from
the information provided in the question
It is usually helpful to work from the centre outwards
i.e. fill in intersections (overlaps) first
This is particularly crucial with Venn diagrams with three events
the intersection of events A and B will include the intersection of
events A, B and C
a question would make it clear if a given frequency or probability is
only for events A and B , and not C
Any frequencies or probabilities not given may be able to be calculated from
those that are
Use the results from Basic Probability to deduce missing frequencies or
probabilities and answer questions
P(not A ) = 1 −P ( A )
For independent events, P(A and B ) = P(A ) × P(B )
For mutually exclusive events, P(A or B ) = P(A ) + P(B )
Check a completed Venn diagram that the frequencies sum to the total
involved or that probabilities sum to 1

 Worked Example
40 people were surveyed regarding which games consoles they owned.

8 people said they owned a Playstation 5 (P ) and an Xbox Series X ( X ); 11

people said they owned a Playstation 5 ( P ) and a Nintendo Switch ( N ); 7
people said they owned an Xbox Series X ( X ) and a Nintendo Switch (N ).

4 people said they owned none of these consoles whilst 2 people said they
owned all 3.

Of those people that owned only one games console, twice as many owned
a Nintendo Switch as a Playstation 5 and half as many owned an Xbox Series
X as a Playstation 5.

(a) Draw a complete Venn diagram to illustrate the information given

above.
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(b)
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One of the 40 people is chosen at random. Find the probability that
this person

(i) owns all three consoles,

(ii) owns exactly two consoles,
(iii) doesn’t own a Playstation 5.

(c) Determine if the events X and N are independent.

(a) Draw a complete Venn diagram to illustrate the information given above.

(b) One of the 40 people is chosen at random. Find the probability that this
person

(i) owns all three consoles,

(ii) owns exactly two consoles,
(iii) doesn’t own a Playstation 5.

(c) Determine if the events X and N are independent.

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4/28/23, 11:20 PM Venn Diagrams (3.1.2) | Edexcel A Level Maths: Statistics Revision Notes 2018 | Save My Exams

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
Exam Tip
Always draw the box in a Venn diagram; it represents all possible
outcomes of the experiment so is a crucial part of the diagram, the
bubbles merely represent the events we are particularly interested
in
In complicated problems it can be helpful to draw a “mini-Venn”
diagram for part of a question and shade/label the regions of the
diagram that are relevant to that part

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Author: Paul
Paul has taught mathematics for 20 years and has been an examiner for Edexcel for over a
decade. GCSE, A level, pure, mechanics, statistics, discrete – if it’s in a Maths exam, Paul will
know about it. Paul is a passionate fan of clear and colourful notes with fascinating diagrams –
one of the many reasons he is excited to be a member of the SME team.

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