A biased die in the form of a tetrahedron has its four faces labelled 1 to 4, with one number printed on each face. The die is tossed and is the random variable representing the number on the face on which the die lands. The probability distribution of is shown in the table below.
1 2 3 4
A game is played by a player tossing this die once. If the die lands on the face with the number 4 printed on it, the player wins, otherwise the player loses. The random variable denotes the number of wins out of 50 games the player plays.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
- (a)
State the numerical value of .
- (b)
Given that , find the values of and .
- (c)
State two assumptions needed for to be well modelled by a binomial distribution.
- (d)
Assume that follows a binomial distribution.
Find the probability the player wins more than the expected number of games won.
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Worked solution
10(a)
1. Determine the value of $\mathrm{E}(X)$ using the sum of probabilities or symmetry
Since the sum of all probabilities is :
Using the formula for expectation:
(Alternatively, by observing that the probability distribution is perfectly symmetrical about , one can directly state .)
10(b)
1. Establish the first equation using the sum of probabilities.
2. Express $\mathrm{E}(X^2)$ in terms of $p$ and $q$.
3. Form a second equation using the given variance and the value of $\mathrm{E}(X)$ from part (a).
From part (a), by symmetry, .
4. Solve the simultaneous equations to find $p$ and $q$.
Substitute into the variance equation:
Substitute back to find :
10(c)
1. State the assumption of independence between trials
The outcome of each game (whether the player wins or loses) must be independent of all other games.
2. State the assumption of a constant probability of success
The probability of winning (getting a 4) must remain constant for every game played.
- The outcome of each game is independent of the outcomes of all other games.
- The probability of winning remains constant for every game.
10(d)
1. Find the value of $p$ using the probability distribution and conditions from earlier parts.
From the probability table, the sum of probabilities is :
The expected value is:
Using the given :
Substituting :
2. Define the distribution of $Y$ and find the expected number of games won.
The probability of winning a game (landing on 4) is .
Given games, .
The expected number of games won is:
3. Calculate the probability that the player wins more than the expected number of games.
We require . Since is a discrete integer count:
Using a graphing calculator:
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