A coin is tossed three times and the results are recorded. What is the probability of getting:(a) Three heads.(b) At least two heads.(c) At most one tail
Question
A coin is tossed three times and the results are recorded. What is the probability of getting:
(a) Three heads.
(b) At least two heads.
(c) At most one tail.
Solution
(a) Three heads:
The probability of getting a head (H) or a tail (T) in a single toss of a fair coin is 1/2.
Since the tosses are independent, the probability of getting three heads is the product of the probabilities of getting a head in each toss.
So, P(HHH) = P(H) * P(H) * P(H) = (1/2) * (1/2) * (1/2) = 1/8.
(b) At least two heads:
This means we can have either two heads and one tail or three heads.
The number of ways to get two heads and one tail in three tosses is 3 (HTH, HHT, THH).
So, P(at least two heads) = P(HHT or HTH or THH or HHH) = [3 * P(HHT) + P(HHH)] = [3 * (1/2) * (1/2) * (1/2) + (1/2) * (1/2) * (1/2)] = [3/8 + 1/8] = 4/8 = 1/2.
(c) At most one tail:
This means we can have either no tails (three heads) or one tail (two heads and one tail).
So, P(at most one tail) = P(HHH or HHT or HTH or THH) = [P(HHH) + 3 * P(HHT)] = [(1/2) * (1/2) * (1/2) + 3 * (1/2) * (1/2) * (1/2)] = [1/8 + 3/8] = 4/8 = 1/2.
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