How many different words can be formed by jumbling the letters in the ...
Problem:
How many different words can be formed by jumbling the letters in the word MISSISSIPPI in which no two S are adjacent?
Solution:
To solve this problem, we can use the concept of permutations with restrictions. Let's break down the solution into steps:
Step 1:
Count the total number of letters in the given word MISSISSIPPI. We have:
- 1 M
- 4 I's
- 4 S's
- 2 P's
Step 2:
Consider the letters I, P, and M as distinct. So, we have a total of 7 distinct letters: M, I1, I2, I3, I4, S1, S2, P1, and P2.
Step 3:
Since we want no two S's to be adjacent, we need to place the S's in such a way that there is at least one letter between each pair of S's. This can be done by placing the S's in the 8 available positions (before the first letter, after the last letter, and between each pair of distinct letters).
Step 4:
Now, we need to find the number of ways to arrange the remaining 7 distinct letters (M, I1, I2, I3, I4, P1, P2) in the remaining 8 positions. This can be done using the concept of permutations.
Step 5:
The number of ways to arrange the remaining 7 distinct letters in the remaining 8 positions can be calculated as:
- Number of ways to select 4 out of 7 distinct letters (M, I1, I2, I3, I4, P1, P2) to fill the 4 positions among the 8 available positions.
- This can be calculated using the combination formula: 7C4 = 7! / (4! * (7-4)!) = 7! / (4! * 3!) = 7 * 6 * 5 / (3 * 2 * 1) = 35.
Step 6:
Finally, we need to consider the arrangements of the S's among themselves. Since we have 4 S's, the number of ways to arrange them can be calculated as:
- Number of ways to select 4 out of 8 positions to place the S's.
- This can be calculated using the combination formula: 8C4 = 8! / (4! * (8-4)!) = 8! / (4! * 4!) = 8 * 7 * 6 * 5 / (4 * 3 * 2 * 1) = 70.
Step 7:
To get the final answer, we need to multiply the results from Step 5 and Step 6 because the arrangements of the remaining 7 distinct letters and the arrangements of the S's are independent of each other.
Final Answer:
The total number of different words that can be formed by jumbling the letters in the word MISSISSIPPI, where no two S's are adjacent, is: 35 * 70 = 2450.
Therefore, the correct option is D) 7