MHB What is the number of blue balls in the second urn?

Click For Summary
The problem involves two urns: the first contains 4 red and 6 blue balls, while the second has 16 red balls and an unknown number of blue balls. The probability that both balls drawn from each urn are of the same color is given as 0.44. The correct approach to solve this involves calculating the probabilities for both colors and setting up the equation: (4/10)(16/(16+x)) + (6/10)(x/(16+x)) = 0.44. Solving this equation reveals that the number of blue balls in the second urn is 4.
Houdini1
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Question:
An urn contains 10 balls: 4 red and 6 blue. A second urn contains 16 red balls and an unknown number of blue balls. A single ball is drawn from each urn. The probability that both balls are the same color is .44. Calculate the number of blue balls in the second urn.

My attempt
I don't know the best notation to use for this situation. I am going to try [math]P(R_1)[/math] as the probability of drawing a red ball from the first urn. So we have [math]P(R_1)=.4 \text{ and } P(B_1)=.6[/math]. To express the probability of both balls being a single color it seems there are two cases to consider which we should add: [math]P(R_1 \cap R_2)+P(B_1 \cap B_2)[/math]. Am I correct in thinking that for mutually exclusive events that's the same as [math]P(R_1 \cdot R_2)+P(B_1 \cdot B_2)[/math]?

I know the basic ways to manipulate these using DeMorgan's Laws but I'm missing the first step or have set up the problem entirely incorrectly. I have the solution key but I don't want the full solution yet.
 
Mathematics news on Phys.org
Houdini said:
Question:
An urn contains 10 balls: 4 red and 6 blue. A second urn contains 16 red balls and an unknown number of blue balls. A single ball is drawn from each urn. The probability that both balls are the same color is .44. Calculate the number of blue balls in the second urn.
I would solve the following:
\frac{4}{10}\frac{16}{16+x}+\frac{6}{10}\frac{x}{16+x}=\frac{44}{100}.
 
Makes perfect sense. I've been trying to use all of these set rules that I missed it. So x=4 and plugging that in confirms.
 
Thread 'Erroneously  finding discrepancy in transpose rule'
Obviously, there is something elementary I am missing here. To form the transpose of a matrix, one exchanges rows and columns, so the transpose of a scalar, considered as (or isomorphic to) a one-entry matrix, should stay the same, including if the scalar is a complex number. On the other hand, in the isomorphism between the complex plane and the real plane, a complex number a+bi corresponds to a matrix in the real plane; taking the transpose we get which then corresponds to a-bi...

Similar threads

  • · Replies 12 ·
Replies
12
Views
4K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
2K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
5K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
2K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
3K
Replies
2
Views
3K
Replies
8
Views
3K
Replies
2
Views
4K