Math Problem Statement

Winning the jackpot in a particular lottery requires that you select the correct five numbers between 1 and 42 ​and, in a separate​ drawing, you must also select the correct single number between 1 and 43. Find the probability of winning the jackpot. Question content area bottom Part 1 The probability of winning the jackpot is    enter your response here. ​(Type an integer or simplified​ fraction.)

Solution

To find the probability of winning the jackpot in this lottery, we need to compute the probability of two independent events happening together:

  1. Selecting the correct five numbers out of 42 numbers.
  2. Selecting the correct single number out of 43 numbers.

Step 1: Probability of selecting the correct five numbers

The order in which the five numbers are selected doesn't matter, so we use combinations. The number of ways to select 5 numbers from 42 is given by:

(425)=42!5!(425)!=42!5!×37!\binom{42}{5} = \frac{42!}{5!(42-5)!} = \frac{42!}{5! \times 37!}

This gives the total number of ways to choose 5 numbers out of 42.

Step 2: Probability of selecting the correct single number

There are 43 possible numbers, and you need to pick the correct one. The probability of selecting this number is:

143\frac{1}{43}

Step 3: Calculating the overall probability

The overall probability is the product of the probability of selecting the correct 5 numbers and the probability of selecting the correct single number. This is:

P=1(425)×143P = \frac{1}{\binom{42}{5}} \times \frac{1}{43}

First, we calculate (425)\binom{42}{5}:

(425)=42×41×40×39×385×4×3×2×1=850668\binom{42}{5} = \frac{42 \times 41 \times 40 \times 39 \times 38}{5 \times 4 \times 3 \times 2 \times 1} = 850668

Now, the overall probability of winning the jackpot is:

P=1850668×143=136578724P = \frac{1}{850668} \times \frac{1}{43} = \frac{1}{36578724}

Thus, the probability of winning the jackpot is:

136578724\boxed{\frac{1}{36578724}}

Would you like more details or have any questions?

Here are five related questions:

  1. What is the probability of selecting only the correct five numbers out of 42?
  2. How does the probability change if the separate drawing has 50 numbers instead of 43?
  3. What is the probability of selecting four correct numbers out of five in this lottery?
  4. How many total combinations of five numbers can be chosen from 42?
  5. What is the expected number of plays needed to win this lottery?

Tip: Remember, in probability, when dealing with independent events, their combined probability is the product of their individual probabilities.

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Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Probability
Combinatorics

Formulas

Combination formula: C(n, k) = n! / (k!(n-k)!)
Probability of independent events: P(A and B) = P(A) * P(B)

Theorems

Basic principle of combinatorics
Multiplication rule of independent probability

Suitable Grade Level

Grades 11-12