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Of the 20 lightbulbs in a box, 2 are defective. An inspector will select 2 lightbulbs simultaneously and at random from the box. What is the probability that neither of the lightbulbs selected will be defective?
Give your answer as a fraction.
[Numeric Ability Question]
Correct answer is '153/190'. Can you explain this answer?
Most Upvoted Answer
Of the 20 lightbulbs in a box, 2 are defective. An inspector will sel...
To find the probability that neither of the lightbulbs selected will be defective, we can use the concept of combinations.

Let's break down the problem with the given information:

Total number of lightbulbs in the box = 20
Number of defective lightbulbs = 2

We need to select 2 lightbulbs simultaneously and at random from the box.

Step 1: Finding the total number of ways to select 2 lightbulbs from the box
To find this, we can use the concept of combinations. The formula for combinations is given by:

nCr = n! / (r! * (n-r)!)

where n is the total number of items, r is the number of items to be selected, and ! denotes factorial.

In our case, we need to find the number of ways to select 2 lightbulbs from a total of 20, so n = 20 and r = 2.

20C2 = 20! / (2! * (20-2)!)
= 20! / (2! * 18!)
= (20 * 19 * 18!) / (2! * 18!)
= (20 * 19) / 2
= 380

So, there are 380 different ways to select 2 lightbulbs from the box.

Step 2: Finding the number of ways to select 2 non-defective lightbulbs
Since there are 2 defective lightbulbs, the remaining 18 lightbulbs in the box are non-defective. So, we need to select 2 lightbulbs from these 18 non-defective lightbulbs.

18C2 = 18! / (2! * (18-2)!)
= 18! / (2! * 16!)
= (18 * 17) / 2
= 153

There are 153 different ways to select 2 non-defective lightbulbs.

Step 3: Calculating the probability
The probability is given by the number of favorable outcomes divided by the total number of outcomes.

Number of favorable outcomes = number of ways to select 2 non-defective lightbulbs = 153
Total number of outcomes = number of ways to select 2 lightbulbs from the box = 380

Probability = Number of favorable outcomes / Total number of outcomes
= 153 / 380
= 153/190

Therefore, the probability that neither of the lightbulbs selected will be defective is 153/190.
Free Test
Community Answer
Of the 20 lightbulbs in a box, 2 are defective. An inspector will sel...
The desired probability corresponds to the fraction the number of ways that 2 lightbulbs, both of which are not defective, can be chosen / the number of ways that 2 lightbulbs can be chosen
In order to calculate the desired probability, you need to calculate the values of the numerator and the denominator of this fraction.
Approach is to look at the selection of the two lightbulbs separately. The problem states that lightbulbs are selected simultaneously. However, the timing of the selection only ensures that the same lightbulb is not chosen twice. This is equivalent to choosing one lightbulb first and then choosing a second lightbulb without replacing the first. The probability that the first lightbulb selected will not be defective is 18/20. If the first lightbulb selected is not defective, there will be 19 lightbulbs left to choose from, 17 of which are not defective. Thus, the probability that the second lightbulb selected will not be defective is 17/19. The probability that both lightbulbs selected will not be defective is the product of these two probabilities. Thus, the desired probability is (18/20)(17/19) = 153/119. The correct answer is 153/119.
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Of the 20 lightbulbs in a box, 2 are defective. An inspector will select 2 lightbulbs simultaneously and at random from the box. What is the probability that neither of the lightbulbs selected will be defective?Give your answer as a fraction.[Numeric Ability Question]Correct answer is '153/190'. Can you explain this answer?
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