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Critical Thinking Suppose two events \(A\) and \(B\) are mutually exclusive, with \(P(A) \neq 0\) and \(P(B) \neq 0 .\) By working through the following steps, you'll see why two mutually exclusive events are not independent. (a) For mutually exclusive events, can event \(A\) occur if event \(B\) has occurred? What is the value of \(P(A | B) ?\) (b) Using the information from part (a), can you conclude that events \(A\) and \(B\) are not independent if they are mutually exclusive? Explain.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Mutually exclusive events can't be independent since they can't occur together, making conditional probability zero.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding Mutually Exclusive Events

Two events, \(A\) and \(B\), are mutually exclusive if they cannot occur at the same time. This means that if event \(B\) occurs, then event \(A\) cannot occur, and vice versa. Mathematically, this is expressed as \(A \cap B = \emptyset\), where \(A \cap B\) is the intersection of events \(A\) and \(B\), and \(\emptyset\) represents an empty set.
02

Calculating Conditional Probability \(P(A | B)\)

Since \(A\) and \(B\) are mutually exclusive, if \(B\) occurs, \(A\) cannot occur. Therefore, the probability of \(A\) occurring given that \(B\) has occurred is zero. Thus, \(P(A | B) = 0\).
03

Understanding Independence of Events

Two events \(A\) and \(B\) are independent if the fact that \(A\) occurs does not affect the probability of \(B\) occurring. Mathematically, this is expressed as \(P(A \cap B) = P(A) \times P(B)\).
04

Conclusion about Independence

Since \(P(A | B) = 0\) and \(P(B) eq 0\), \(P(A | B) eq P(A)\), which contradicts the definition of independence. If \(A\) and \(B\) were independent, then \(P(A | B)\) should equal \(P(A)\). Thus, events \(A\) and \(B\) cannot be independent if they are mutually exclusive.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

Conditional Probability
Conditional probability explores the probability of an event occurring given that another event has already occurred. Written as \( P(A | B) \), it reads as "the probability of \( A \) given \( B \)." It's crucial for understanding relationships between different events.
Consider mutually exclusive events, such as our \( A \) and \( B \). If \( B \) occurs, \( A \) cannot—making \( P(A | B) = 0 \). This zero probability highlights that the knowledge of \( B \) alters our understanding of \( A \)'s potential occurrence.
Conditional probability is a pivotal concept in statistics and everyday decision-making. By refining how probability is calculated based on prior knowledge, it enhances predictions and likelihood assessments.
Independent Events
Independent events do not influence each other's occurrence. If \((A)\) and \((B)\) are independent, the happening of \((A)\) has no bearing on the probability that \((B)\) might occur, and vice versa.
This relationship is mathematically described as \( P(A \cap B) = P(A) \times P(B) \). Simply put, this means the joint probability of both events occurring is the product of each event's individual probability.
Independent events behave differently from mutually exclusive ones. While mutually exclusive events cannot occur simultaneously, independent events can.Various scenarios, from rolling dice to business decision making, involve independence where events operate without affecting each other's risks or outcomes.
Probability Theory
Probability theory provides the foundation for evaluating likelihoods of events. It's an essential tool in fields ranging from science to economics.
Key concepts include:
  • Sample Space: The set of all possible outcomes, often denoted as \( S \).
  • Events: Subsets of the sample space, like events \( A \) and \( B \).
  • Probability Measure: Assigning probabilities to events, ensuring they sum to 1.
The central tenet of probability theory is understanding and calculating the chance of various combinations of events. For example, mutually exclusive events like \( A \) and \( B \) cannot simultaneously occur, affecting calculations and interpretations significantly.
Probability theory is integral in risk assessment, simulations, and determining event outcomes. Whether predicting weather patterns or managing project risks, it offers a structured approach for quantifying uncertainty.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Consider the experiment of tossing a fair coin 3 times. For each coin, the possible outcomes are heads or tails. (a) List the equally likely events of the sample space for the three tosses. (b) What is the probability that all three coins come up heads? Notice that the complement of the event "3 heads" is "at least one tail." Use this information to compute the probability that there will be at least one tail.

On a single toss of a fair coin, the probability of heads is 0.5 and the probability of tails is \(0.5 .\) If you toss a coin twice and get heads on the first toss, are you guaranteed to get tails on the second toss? Explain.

Counting Four wires (red, green, blue, and yellow) need to be attached to a circuit board. A robotic device will attach the wires. The wires can be attached in any order, and the production manager wishes to determine which order would be fastest for the robot to use. Use the multiplication rule of counting to determine the number of possible sequences of assembly that must be tested. Hint: There are four choices for the first wire, three for the second, two for the third, and only one for the fourth.

What is the law of large numbers? If you were using the relative frequency of an event to estimate the probability of the event, would it be better to use 100 trials or 500 trials? Explain.

(a) If you roll a single die and count the number of dots on top, what is the sample space of all possible outcomes? Are the outcomes equally likely? (b) Assign probabilitics to the outcomes of the sample space of part (a). Do the probabilities add up to \(1 ?\) Should they add up to \(1 ?\) Explain. (c) What is the probability of getting a number less than 5 on a single throw? (d) What is the probability of getting 5 or 6 on a single throw?

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