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A circus clown is entertaining kids by making balloon

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by AAPL » Sat Oct 27, 2018 5:21 am

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Manhattan Prep

A circus clown is entertaining kids by making balloon animals. The clown can make any one of the following animals: giraffe, dog, elephant, or monkey. The clown has five colors of balloons to choose from: red, yellow, blue, green, and purple. If the clown is just as likely to make any one of the animals and choose any one color, what is the probability that the clown will make a purple elephant?

A. 1/24
B. 1/20
C. 2/15
D. 3/20
E. 1/8

OA B
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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Sat Oct 27, 2018 9:46 am
AAPL wrote:Manhattan Prep

A circus clown is entertaining kids by making balloon animals. The clown can make any one of the following animals: giraffe, dog, elephant, or monkey. The clown has five colors of balloons to choose from: red, yellow, blue, green, and purple. If the clown is just as likely to make any one of the animals and choose any one color, what is the probability that the clown will make a purple elephant?

A. 1/24
B. 1/20
C. 2/15
D. 3/20
E. 1/8

OA B
As with many probability questions, we can solve this by using counting techniques or rules of probability.

Let's use rules of probability
P(balloon animal is an elephant) = 1/4 [since there are 4 possible animals and 1 is an elephant]
P(balloon animal is purple) = 1/5 [since there are 5 possible colors and 1 is purple]

P(clown makes a purple elephant balloon animal) = P(balloon animal is elephant AND balloon animal is purple)
= P(balloon animal is elephant) x P(balloon animal is purple)
= 1/4 x 1/5
= 1/20

Answer: B

Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
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by swerve » Mon Oct 29, 2018 8:16 am
We can solve this problem as follows,

The probability of clown picking the purple balloon = 1/5

The probability of clown making an elephant = 1/4

The probability of clown making a purple elephant = 1/5 * 1/4 = 1/20

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A circus clown is entertaining kids by making balloon

by fskilnik@GMATH » Tue Oct 30, 2018 1:17 am
AAPL wrote:Manhattan Prep

A circus clown is entertaining kids by making balloon animals. The clown can make any one of the following animals: giraffe, dog, elephant, or monkey. The clown has five colors of balloons to choose from: red, yellow, blue, green, and purple. If the clown is just as likely to make any one of the animals and choose any one color, what is the probability that the clown will make a purple elephant?

A. 1/24
B. 1/20
C. 2/15
D. 3/20
E. 1/8
$$\left\{ \matrix{
\,4\,{\rm{animals}} \hfill \cr
\,5\,{\rm{colors}} \hfill \cr} \right.\,\,\,\,\, \to \,\,\,\,{\rm{randomly}}\,\,{\rm{choice}}\,\,{\rm{of}}\,\,{\rm{one}}\,\,{\rm{of}}\,\,{\rm{each}}$$
$${\rm{? = P}}\left( {\,{\rm{certain}}\,\,{\rm{animal}}\,\,{\rm{and}}\,\,{\rm{certain}}\,\,{\rm{color}}\,} \right)$$
$${\rm{Total}} = 4 \cdot 5 = 20\,\,\,{\rm{equiprobable}}\,\,{\rm{choices}}$$
$$? = {1 \over {20}}$$

This solution follows the notations and rationale taught in the GMATH method.

Regards,
Fabio.
Fabio Skilnik :: GMATH method creator ( Math for the GMAT)
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Portuguese-speakers :: https://www.gmath.com.br
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by Scott@TargetTestPrep » Tue Oct 30, 2018 6:09 pm
AAPL wrote:Manhattan Prep

A circus clown is entertaining kids by making balloon animals. The clown can make any one of the following animals: giraffe, dog, elephant, or monkey. The clown has five colors of balloons to choose from: red, yellow, blue, green, and purple. If the clown is just as likely to make any one of the animals and choose any one color, what is the probability that the clown will make a purple elephant?

A. 1/24
B. 1/20
C. 2/15
D. 3/20
E. 1/8
The total number of different colored balloon animals can be made is 4 x 5 = 20. Thus, the probability that the clown will make a purple elephant is 1/20.

Answer: B

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