Math Problem Statement

Let S = {∞ · a, ∞ · b, ∞ · c}, answer the following:

(d) How many 10 - combinations of S contain at least two a’s and at least 2 b’s?

Solution

We are given a set S={a,b,c}S = \{\infty \cdot a, \infty \cdot b, \infty \cdot c\}, where the elements aa, bb, and cc have infinite repetition. The problem asks for how many 10-combinations of SS contain at least 2 aa's and at least 2 bb's.

Step 1: Understanding the Setup

A 10-combination of SS is a combination where the sum of the occurrences of aa's, bb's, and cc's adds up to 10. In mathematical terms, this is finding the number of solutions to: xa+xb+xc=10x_a + x_b + x_c = 10 where xax_a, xbx_b, and xcx_c are non-negative integers representing how many times aa, bb, and cc appear in the combination.

Step 2: Enforcing the Conditions

We are asked to find combinations that contain at least two aa's and at least two bb's. To enforce this condition, let’s introduce new variables: ya=xa2,yb=xb2y_a = x_a - 2, \quad y_b = x_b - 2 Thus, ya0y_a \geq 0 and yb0y_b \geq 0, and now the equation becomes: (ya+2)+(yb+2)+xc=10(y_a + 2) + (y_b + 2) + x_c = 10 Simplifying, we get: ya+yb+xc=6y_a + y_b + x_c = 6 Now we need to count the number of non-negative integer solutions to this equation.

Step 3: Applying the Stars and Bars Method

The equation ya+yb+xc=6y_a + y_b + x_c = 6 is a standard stars and bars problem, where we count the number of non-negative integer solutions to an equation of the form ya+yb+xc=ny_a + y_b + x_c = n.

The formula for the number of non-negative integer solutions to y1+y2++yk=ny_1 + y_2 + \dots + y_k = n is given by: (n+k1k1)\binom{n+k-1}{k-1} In our case, n=6n = 6 and k=3k = 3 (since we have 3 variables: yay_a, yby_b, and xcx_c). Therefore, the number of solutions is: (6+3131)=(82)\binom{6+3-1}{3-1} = \binom{8}{2} Now, calculate: (82)=8×72=28\binom{8}{2} = \frac{8 \times 7}{2} = 28

Step 4: Conclusion

There are 28 10-combinations of SS that contain at least two aa's and at least two bb's.

Would you like further details on any step, or have questions?


Here are 5 related questions to explore:

  1. How many 10-combinations contain exactly 3 aa's and 4 bb's?
  2. What is the total number of 10-combinations of SS without any restrictions?
  3. How many 10-combinations contain at most 1 cc?
  4. What is the number of 12-combinations that contain at least 4 aa's and 3 bb's?
  5. How many 10-combinations contain no aa's and no cc's?

Tip: The stars and bars method is a powerful combinatorial technique to solve problems involving distributing indistinguishable objects into distinguishable boxes.

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Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Combinatorics
Stars and Bars Method
Non-negative Integer Solutions

Formulas

Stars and Bars formula: \binom{n+k-1}{k-1} for counting non-negative integer solutions to an equation

Theorems

Stars and Bars Theorem

Suitable Grade Level

Grades 10-12