UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION, WINNEBA

COLLEGE FOR DISTANCE AND e-LEARNING

TEACHING AND ASSESSING JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

MATHEMATICS (ADVANCED) (JBM361)

For 4-Yr B.Ed BASIC EDUCATION (MATHEMATICS SPECIALIST)

UNITS 3 & 4

Written by:
Clement Ayarebilla Ali, PhD.
Emmanuel Asemani, MPhil.

Edited by:
Jones Apawu, PhD.

1
UNIT 3 BASIC PROBABILITY

UNIT INTRODUCTION
Dear Students Teachers,
Probability theory is applied in everyday life in risk assessment and modelling. The insurance
industry and markets use actuarial science to determine pricing and make trading decisions.
Governments apply probabilistic methods in environmental regulation, entitlement analysis,
and financial regulation. In this unit, we are going to learn the basic concepts of probability
contained in the following sections:
1. Unit 3 section 1 basic concepts of probability
2. Unit 3 section 2 probability with mutually exclusive and inclusive events
3. Unit 3 section 3 probability with dependent and independent events
4. Unit 3 section 4 probability with replacement and without replacement
5. Unit 3 section 5 probability with tree diagrams and conditional probability
6. Unit 3 section 6 probability with counting principles

2
UNIT 3 SECTION 1
BASIC CONCEPTS OF PROBABILITY
INTRODUCTION
Dear Student-Teachers,
Probability began with experiments, guessing outcomes and computing likely events from the
outcomes. Initially, we start with dice, coins, and cards, ages or birthdays of students to
complex issues in data. What happens when a data set is large? Then we need complex
mathematical techniques in probability distributions.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Use manipulatives and other • Use manipulatives and other TLMs in developing
TLMs including ICT in a variety Basic Concepts of Probability.
of ways in learning mathematics • Use ICT as a tool in developing Basic Concepts of
concepts in basic concepts of Probability E.g. Geometer Sketchpad, Geogebra.
probability (practical skills, • Use drawing tools to conduct geometrical
digital literacy, problem solving) investigations emphasising visualization, pattern
(NTS, 3j); recognitions and conjecturing.
• Solve mathematics problems using manipulatives
and/or technology related strategies in a variety of
ways.

An experiment
An experiment is a process by which an outcome is obtained. Therefore, a random experiment
is a process or action whose outcome is not determined.

Examples
1. rolling a die
2. tossing a coin
3. selecting a card
4. selecting a colour
5. throwing a ball
6. measuring ages or height or weights of pupils
7. choosing a number
8. writing an English vowel
9. drawing a shape

Outcome
An outcome is a single result from a measurement of an experiment.

Examples
1. one of head or tail from tossing a coin
2. one of 1,2,3,4,5 or 6 from picking a die
3. one of heart, spade, diamond or culet of choosing from a desk of cards
4. one of ‘a’, ‘e’, ‘I’, ‘o’, or ‘u’ of selecting the English vowels

3
5. one 2,3,5,7,11,13,17,or 19 of selecting prime numbers less than 20

Equally likely outcomes

Two outcomes of a random experiment are said to be equally likely, if upon performing the
experiment a (very) large number of times, the relative occurrences of the two outcomes turn
out to be equal.

Examples
1. For a perfectly fair coin, the relative occurrences of H and T for a very large number of
tosses will be equal (as n goes to infinity, we will come closer to a perfect equality).
2. For an unbiased, unloaded die, each of the six outcomes is equally likely.
3. For an unbiased, unloaded deck of playing cards, each of the four outcomes (hearts, clubs,
diamonds and spades) is equally likely.

Sample Space
In probability, the set of all possible outcomes is called the Sample Space. We use S to
represent the sample space.

In terms of the language of sets, a sample space is a universal set and an outcome is an element
of the universal set.

NB: The number of all possible outcomes may be finite, infinite or continuous.

Activity 1.1
1. The sample space for the experiment of tossing a coin once is S = {H, T} because there are
only two possible outcomes, Heads or Tails.

2. The sample space for the experiment of tossing a standard die is S = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6} because
these are the only six possible outcomes.

2. The sample space for the experiment of selecting a playing from a standard deck of cards is
S = {1, 2, 3, …52} because these are the only 52 possible outcomes.
The cards are not numbered from 1 to 52. They have four different kinds that add up to 52.

3. The set of prime numbers S = {2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19…}

An Event
It is a particular result or set of results amongst the possibilities in the sample space.

Examples
1. obtaining odd numbers from tossing a die
2. obtaining head from throwing a coin
3. obtaining a heart from selecting cards

4
The concept of probability
Probability is the likelihood that an event will occur. It is written as a fraction with the number
of favourable outcomes as the numerator and the total number of outcomes as the denominator.
Favourable just means that a particular outcome is what you are curious about, not that it is
necessarily positive.
Probability can be used to determine many things, from the likelihood that you will win the
jackpot in the lottery to the likelihood that a baby will be born with a certain birth defect and
anything in between. Probability is used extensively in the sciences, investing, weather
reporting and many other areas.
Three Definitions of Probability
Probability can be expressed as a percentage, a fraction, a decimal, or a ratio.

A. Classical definition

If there are a finite number of possible outcomes of an experiment, all equally likely and
mutually exclusive, then the probability of an event (A) is the number of outcomes favourable
to the event, divided by the total number of possible outcomes.

n( A)
That is, P ( A) =
n (S )

Examples
1. A fair die is rolled once. What is the probability that the outcome is more than 4?

Solution
S = 1,2,3,4,5,6 and A = 5,6
Thus n( S ) = 6 and n( A) = 2
n( A) 2 1
Therefore ( A) = = =
n(S ) 6 3

B. Statistical or relative frequency definition

The probability of an event denotes the relative frequency of occurrence of that event in the
long run. For instance, the probability of a newborn infant being female is estimated to be about
.51 in Ghana. This is also called the frequentist definition and is the one in common use.

But it is not a fully satisfactory definition. What does in the long run mean? And what about
situations in which the experiment cannot be repeated indefinitely under identical conditions,
even in principle?

C. The axiomatic approach

A mathematically precise approach is the axiomatic definition of probability, which
incorporates both classical and relative frequency. It begins with some abstract terms and then
defines a few basic axioms on which an elaborate logical structure can be built using the
mathematical theories of sets and measure. In other words, it is a type of probability that has

5
a set of axioms (rules) attached to it. For example, you could have a rule that the probability
must be greater than 0%, that one event must happen, and that one event cannot happen if
another event happens.

It could also states that a probability is a number between zero and one, but nothing is specified
about how to assign it. Assignment may be based on a model or on experimental data.
Developments are valid if they follow from the axioms, independent of any correspondence to
phenomena of the physical world. The following statements represent the axioms of
probability.

Axioms of probability
Let S be a finite sample space, A an event in S. We define P(A), the probability of A, to be the
value of an additive set that satisfies the following three conditions
• Axiom 1: 0 ≤𝑃𝐴≤1 for each event A in S (probabilities are real numbers between 0 and
1 inclusive).
• Axiom 2: (𝑆) =1 (the probability of some event occurring from S is unity).
• Axiom 3: If A and B are mutually exclusive events in S, then (𝐴 U 𝐵) = 𝑃𝐴+𝑃(𝐵) (the
probability function is an additive set function).
( ) ( )
• Axiom 4: If A is an event in S, then P A = 1 − P( A) , where A is the complement of
A.

Simple events
A simple event is one in which there is just one possible outcome. Determining the probability
of a simple event involves finding the sum of probabilities of the individual events.

Examples
1) What is the probability that you will roll a five using a 6-sided die?
The favourable outcome is rolling a five, and that can only occur once using one die. The total
number of outcomes is six, since the die is 6-sided.

So the probability of rolling a five is 1/6.

2) What is the probability that you will pull a heart out of a standard deck of cards?
The favourable outcome would be pulling a heart and there are 13 of them in a standard deck.
The total number of outcomes is 52 because there are 52 cards in a standard deck.
The probability of pulling a heart is 13/52 or 1/4.

Compound Events
A compound event is one in which there is more than one possible outcome. Determining the
probability of a compound event involves finding the sum of the probabilities of the individual
events and, if necessary, removing any overlapping probabilities.

Complementary events
The Rule of Complements defines the probability of the complement of an event in terms of
the probability of the original event. Consider event A defined over the sample space S. The
complement of set A, denoted by A , is a subset, which contains all outcomes, which do not
belong to A. In other words PA) + P( A ) = 1 or P( A ) = 1 − P( A) .
Activity 1.2

6
1. Find the probability of the event of getting a total of less than 12 in the experiment of
throwing a die twice.

Solution
Let A be the event of getting a total 12.
The event of getting a total of less than 12 is the complement of A
But P(A)=1/36
Hence P( A ) = 1 − 1 / 36 = 35 / 36

2. In a sample of 55 people, 28 have brown hair and 22 have blue eyes. 5 of them have neither
brown hair nor blue eyes. What is the probability that a random person from the sample has at
least one of these features?

Solution
Our compound events here are “brown hair”, and “blue eyes.” To find the probability that a
person chosen at random from the sample of 55 people has at least one of these features, we
can simply note that since 5 of the 55 have neither feature, all the rest must have at least one,
that is, that 55−5=50 of the 55 have either brown hair or blue eyes or both.

The probability that a person chosen at random has either brown hair, blue eyes, or both is,
therefore, 𝑃(∪)=50/55=10/11. Brown hair + Blue eyes

In essence, we have summed up the probabilities to calculate to know that, for event 𝐴,
(𝐴)=1−𝑃(𝐴¯) and neither brown hair nor blue eyes 𝑃(∪)=1−𝑃(∪)=1−5/55=50/55=10/11.
Hence, as noted, the probability that a person chosen at random from the sample has at least
one of the features “brown hair” and “blue eyes” is 10/11.

3. A die is rolled, find the probability that an even number is obtained.

Solution
Let us first write the sample space S of the experiment.
S = {1,2,3,4,5,6}
Let E be the event “an even number is obtained” and write it down.
E = {2,4,6}
We now use the formula of the classical probability.
P(E) = n(E) / n(S) = 3 / 6 = 1/2

4. Two coins are tossed, find the probability that two heads are obtained.

Note: Each coin has two possible outcomes H (heads) and T (Tails).

Solution
The sample space S is given by.
S = {(H,T),(H,H),(T,H),(T,T)}
Let E be the event "two heads are obtained".
E = {(H,H)}
We use the formula of the classical probability.
P(E) = n(E) / n(S) = 1 / 4

7
5. Which of these numbers cannot be a probability? Explain your answer.
a) -0.00001 b) 0.5 c) 1.001 d) 0 e) 1 f) 20%

Solution
A probability is always greater than or equal to 0 and less than or equal to 1, hence
only a) and c) above cannot represent probabilities: -0.00010 is less than 0 and 1.001 is greater
than 1.

6. Two dice are rolled, find the probability that the sum is
a) equal to 1
b) equal to 4
c) less than 13

Solution
a) The sample space S of two dice is shown below.
S = {(1,1),(1,2),(1,3),(1,4),(1,5),(1,6)
(2,1),(2,2),(2,3),(2,4),(2,5),(2,6)
(3,1),(3,2),(3,3),(3,4),(3,5),(3,6)
(4,1),(4,2),(4,3),(4,4),(4,5),(4,6)
(5,1),(5,2),(5,3),(5,4),(5,5),(5,6)
(6,1),(6,2),(6,3),(6,4),(6,5),(6,6) }

Let E be the event "sum equal to 1". There are no outcomes which correspond to a sum equal
to 1, hence P(E) = n(E) / n(S) = 0 / 36 = 0

b) Three possible outcomes give a sum equal to 4: E = {(1,3),(2,2),(3,1)}, hence.

P(E) = n(E) / n(S) = 3 / 36 = 1 / 12

c) All possible outcomes, E = S, give a sum less than 13, hence.

P(E) = n(E) / n(S) = 36 / 36 = 1

7. A die is rolled and a coin is tossed, find the probability that the die shows an odd number
and the coin shows a head.

Solution
Let H be the head and T be the tail of the coin. The sample space S of the experiment described
in question 5 is as follows
S = { (1,H),(2,H),(3,H),(4,H),(5,H),(6,H), (1,T),(2,T),(3,T),(4,T),(5,T),(6,T)}
Let E be the event “the die shows an odd number and the coin shows a head”.

Event E may be described as follows:

E={(1,H),(3,H),(5,H)}
The probability P(E) is given by
P(E) = n(E) / n(S) = 3/12 = 1/4

8. A card is drawn at random from a deck of cards. Find the probability of getting the 3 of
diamond.

Solution

8
The sample space S of the experiment in question 6 is shown below

Let E be the event “getting the 3 of diamond”. An examination of the sample space shows that
there is one “3 of diamond”
So that n(E) = 1 and n(S) = 52.

Hence the probability of event E occurring is given by P(E) = 1/52

10. A jar contains 3 red marbles, 7 green marbles and 10 white marbles. If a marble is drawn
from the jar at random, what is the probability that this marble is white?

Solution
We first construct a table of frequencies that gives the marbles color distributions as follows
colour frequency
red 3
green 7
white 10

We now use the empirical formula of the probability

P(E) = Frequency for white colour / Total frequencies in the above table = 10/ 20 = 1/ 2

SUMMARY
In this section, we have learned that an experiment is a process by which an outcome is
obtained, an outcome is a single result from a measurement of an experiment and an event is a
particular result or set of results amongst the possibilities in the sample space.

We have also learned that the Axioms of probability are 0 ≤𝑃𝐴≤1 (probabilities are real
numbers between 0 and 1 inclusive), 𝑃(𝑆) =1 (the probability of some event occurring from S
is unity), if A and B are mutually exclusive events in S, then 𝑃(𝐴 U 𝐵) = 𝑃𝐴+𝑃(𝐵) (the

9
 ( )
probability function is an additive set function), and if A is an event in S, then P A = 1 − P( A)
( )
, where A is the complement of A.

Again, we have learned that a compound event is an event with two or more favourable
outcomes and there are three types of compound events and determining the probability for
each is different. These are mutually exclusive or mutually inclusive, independent or
dependent, and nonmutually exclusive or complementary events.

10
UNIT 3 SECTION 2 PROBABILITY WITH MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE AND
INCLUSIVE EVENTS

INTRODUCTION
A compound event is an event with two or more favourable outcomes. There are three types of
compound events and determining the probability for each is different. First, let’s talk about an
exclusive compound event. An exclusive compound event in one in which the multiple events
do not overlap. The method for determining the probability of this type of compound event is
to add together the probabilities of each event. Compound events that cannot happen at the
same time are called mutually exclusive events. For example, a number cannot be both even
and odd or you cannot have picked a single card from a deck of cards that is both a ten and a
jack. Mutually inclusive events, however, can occur at the same time. For example, a number
can be both less than 5 and even or you can pick a card from a deck of cards that can be a club
and a ten.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND INDICATORS

Use manipulatives and • Use manipulatives and other TLMs in developing basic
other TLMs including concepts of probability with mutually exclusive and
ICT in a variety of inclusive events.
ways in learning • Use ICT as a tool in developing basic concepts of
mathematics concepts probability with mutually exclusive and inclusive
in probability with events, e.g. Geometer Sketchpad, Geogebra.
mutually exclusive • Use drawing tools to conduct investigations into
and inclusive events probability with mutually exclusive and inclusive
events, emphasising visualization, pattern recognitions
(practical skills,
and conjecturing.
digital literacy,
• Solve mathematics problems in probability with mutually
problem solving)
exclusive and inclusive events, using manipulatives
(NTS, 3j); and/or technology related strategies in a variety of ways.

Mutually exclusive events

When finding the probability of events occurring at the same time, there is a concept known as
the “double counting” feature. It happens when the intersection is counted twice.
But if the events are mutually exclusive events, then P(A and B)=0, because they cannot
happen at the same time. To find the probability of either mutually exclusive
event A or B occurring, we say that P(A or B)=P(A)+P(B)

Mutually inclusive events

If the events are mutually inclusive, then the probability of one or the other mutually inclusive
event is to add the individual probabilities and subtract the probability they occur at the same
time. That is, P(A or B)=P(A)+P(B)−P(A and B).
Note that finding the probability of one or the other mutually exclusive event is the same as the
formula for finding the probability of one or the other mutually inclusive event
except P(A and B)=0 in the case of the mutually exclusive events.

Examples
1). What is the probability of rolling either a two or a four using one 10-sided die?

11
Solution
The probability of rolling a two is 1/10 and the probability of rolling a four is 1/10.
So, the compound probability is: P(C) = 1/10 + 1/10 = 2/10 or 1/5

2). What is the probability of pulling any face card or a three of clubs from a standard deck of
cards?

Solution
The probability of getting a face card is 12/52 and the probability of getting a three of clubs is
1/52
So the compound probability is P(C) = 12/52 + 1/52 = 13/52 or 1/4

3). What is the probability of drawing a black card or a ten in a deck of cards?

Solution
There are 4 tens in a deck of cards P(tens) = 4/52
There are 26 black cards P(black) = 26/52
There are 2 black tens P(black and ten) = 2/52
P(black or ten)=4/52+26/52−2/52=30/52−2/52=28/52=7/13

4). Using a standard deck of cards, find the probability of:

P(jack or a king)
P(jack or a spade)

Solutions
a. P(jack)=4/52 (there are 4 jacks in a deck of 52 cards)
P(kings) =4/52 (there are 4 kings in a deck of 52 cards)
P(jack or a king) =4/52+4/52=8/52 or 2/13 (since these are mutually exclusive)

b. P(jack or a spade)
P(jack)=4/52
P(spade)=13/52
P(jack and spade)=1/52 (there is one jack that is also a spade)
P(jack or a spade)=4/52+13/52-1/52=16/52 or 4/13

Activity 2.1
1. One card is drawn from a deck of 52 cards, well-shuffled. Calculate the probability that the
card will
(i) be an ace,
(ii) not be an ace.

Solution
Well-shuffling ensures equally likely outcomes.

(i) There are 4 aces in a deck.

Let E be the event the card drawn is ace.
The number of favourable outcomes to the event E = 4
The number of possible outcomes = 52
Therefore, P(E) = 4/52 = 1/13

12
(ii) Let F is the event of ‘card is not an ace’
The number of favourable outcomes to F = 52 – 4 = 48
The number of possible outcomes = 52
Therefore, P(F) = 48/52 = 12/13

2. Two players, Aku and Ama, play a tennis match. The probability of Aku winning the match
is 0.62. What is the probability that Ama will win the match?

Solution:
Let S and R denote the events that Aku wins the match and Ama wins the match, respectively.
The probability of Aku to win = P(S) = 0.62
The probability of Ama to win = P(R) = 1 – P(S)
= 1 – 0.62 = 0.38

3. Two coins (a one rupee coin and a two rupee coin) are tossed once. Find a sample space.

Solution
Either Head(H) or Tail(T) can be the outcomes.
Heads on both coins = (H,H) = HH
Head on 1st coin and Tail on the 2nd coin = (H,T) = HT
Tail on 1st coin and Head on the 2nd coin = (T,H) = TH
Tail on both coins = (T,T) = TT
Therefore, the sample space is S = {HH, HT, TH, TT}

4. Consider the experiment in which a coin is tossed repeatedly until a head comes up. Describe
the sample space.

Solution
In the random experiment where the head can appear on the 1st toss, or the 2nd toss, or the 3rd
toss and so on till we get the head of the coin. Hence, the required sample space is :
S= {H, TH, TTH, TTTH, TTTTH, …}

5. Consider the experiment of rolling a die. Let A be the event ‘getting a prime number’, B be
the event ‘getting an odd number’. Write the sets representing the events
(i) A or B
(ii) A and B
(iii) A but not B
(iv) ‘not A’.

Solution
S = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}, A = {2, 3, 5} and B = {1, 3, 5}
(i) A or B = A ∪ B = {1, 2, 3, 5}
(ii) A and B = A ∩ B = {3,5}
(iii) A but not B = A – B = {2}
(iv) not A = A′ = {1,4,6}

6. A coin is tossed three times, consider the following events.

P: ‘No head appears’,
Q: ‘Exactly one head appears’ and

13
R: ‘At Least two heads appear’.
Check whether they form a set of mutually exclusive and exhaustive events.

Solution
The sample space of the experiment is:
S = {HHH, HHT, HTH, THH, HTT, THT, TTH, TTT} and
P = {TTT},
Q = {HTT, THT, TTH},
R = {HHT, HTH, THH, HHH}
P ∪ Q ∪ R = {TTT, HTT, THT, TTH, HHT, HTH, THH, HHH} = S

Therefore, P, Q and R are exhaustive events.

And
P ∩ Q = φ,
P ∩ R = φ and
Q∩R=φ

Therefore, the events are mutually exclusive.

Hence, P, Q and R form a set of mutually exclusive and exhaustive events.

7. Two fair dice are thrown . M is the event described by “the sum of the scores is 10” and N
is the event described by “the difference between the scores is 3”.
(a) write out the elements of M and N.
(b) find the probability of M and N
(c) find the probability of M or N
(d) Are M and N mutually exclusive? Give reasons

Solution
Fair dice means the numbers will be occurring at regular patterns
Sample space

First die {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}

Second die:
{(1,1), (1,2), (1,3), (1,4), (1,5), (1,6),
(2,1), (2,2), (2,3), (2,4), (2,5), (2,6),
(3,1), (3,2), (3,3), (3,4), (3,5), (3,6),
(4,1), (4,2), (4,3), (4,4), (4,5), (4,6)
(5,1), (5,2), (5,3), (5,4), (5,5), (5,6),
(6,1), (6,2), (6,3), (6,4), (6,5), (6,6)}

(a). Element M=(4,6 5,5 6,4 )

Element N=(1,4 3,6 4,1 5,2 6,3 2,5 )

(b). Probability of M and N = 3/36× 6/36 = 1/72

(c). Probability of M or N = 3/36+6/36 = 9/36 = 1/4
(d). Yes they are mutually exclusive because
( i) the two outcomes cannot happen at the same time
(ii) the occurrence of the outcome of element m will prevent the occurrence of element N

14
8. Two cards are drawn from a deck of cards. Let:
A: 1st card is a club
B: 1st card is a 7
C: 2nd card is a heart

Find the following probabilities:

a. P(A or B)

A club or a 7 can be picked at the same time so these are mutually inclusive events. You can
use the formula from above.
P(A or B)=13/52+4/52−1/52
P(A or B)=16/52 =4/13

b. P(B or A)

c. A club and a 7 can be picked at the same time so these are mutually inclusive events. You
can use the formula from above.
P(B or A)=4/52+13/52−1/52
P(B or A)=16/52 =4/13

d. P(A and C)
Picking a club on the first card and a heart on the second card are dependent events so you need
to multiply the probability of A by the probability of C following A.
P(A and C)=13/52×13/51 =169/2652

SUMMARY
Dear Student Teachers,
In this section, we have learned that two events are mutually exclusive if the occurrence of one
event does not affect the occurrence of the other event. In this sense, the intersection of the
events is empty or null. However, if the events are mutually inclusive then the occurrence of
one affects the occurrence of the other. So, the intersection of the events has an element.

15
UNIT 3 SECTION 3 PROBABILITY WITH DEPENDENT AND INDEPENDENT
EVENTS
INTRODUCTION
The probability of an independent event in the future is not dependent on its past. For example,
if you toss a coin three times and the head comes up all the three times, then what is the
probability of getting a tail on the fourth try? The answer is simply 1/2. This probability of the
head does not depend on the probability of the tail. However, if you draw a deck of playing
cards and select one ‘queen’ of the cards, then the selection of the next card depends on the
‘queen’ you have already selected. In this section, we will learn the slim difference between
the two types of events and solve problems using the ideas.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND INDICATORS

Use manipulatives and other • Use manipulatives and other TLMs in developing
TLMs including ICT in a basic concepts of probability with dependent and
variety of ways in learning independent events.
mathematics concepts in • Use ICT as a tool in developing basic concepts of
probability with dependent probability with dependent and independent events,
and independent events e.g. Geometer Sketchpad, Geogebra.
(practical skills, digital • Use drawing tools to conduct investigations into
literacy, problem probability with dependent and independent events,
solving) (NTS, 3j); emphasising visualization, pattern recognitions and
conjecturing.
• Solve mathematics problems in probability with
dependent and independent events, using
manipulatives and/or technology related strategies
in a variety of ways.

Dependent events
Dependent events influence the probability of other events – or their probability of occurring
is affected by other events. The primary focus when analyzing dependent events is probability.
The occurrence of one event exerts an effect on the probability of another event. Consider the
following examples:
• Getting into a traffic accident is dependent upon driving or riding in a vehicle.
• If you park your vehicle illegally, you are more likely to get a parking ticket.
• You must buy a lottery ticket to have a chance at winning; your odds of winning are
increased if you buy more than one ticket.
• Committing a serious crime – such as breaking into someone’s home – increases your
odds of getting caught and going to jail.

Dependent Events where what happens depends on what happened before, such as taking cards
from a deck makes less cards each time
In dependent events, P(A and B) = P(A)×P(B/A)

Examples
1. A card is chosen at random from a standard deck of 52 playing cards. Without replacing
it, a second card is chosen. What is the probability that the first card chosen is a king and
the second card chosen is a queen?

16
Solution
P(king on first pick)= 4 /52
P(queen on 2nd pick given king on 1st pick) = 4/51
Therefore, P(king and queen) = (4/52×4/51) = 16/2652 = 4/663

2. An tutor has a question bank with 300 easy T/F, 200 Difficult T/F, 500 easy MCQ, and
400 difficult MCQ. If a question is selected randomly from question bank, what is the
probability that it is easy question given that it is a MCQ?

Solution:
Let,
P(easy)= (300+500)/1400 = 800/1400 = 4/7
P(MCQ)= (400+500)/1400 = 900/1400 = 9/14
P(easy ∩ MCQ)= (500)/1400 =5/14
P(easy/MCQ) = P(easy ∩ MCQ)
= (5/14)/(9/14) =5/9

3. In a shipment of 20 apples, 3 are rotten. If 3 apples are randomly selected, what is the
probability that all three are rotten if the first and second are not replaced?

Solution:
Probabilities: P(3 rotten) = (3/20 × 2/19 × 1/18)= 6/6840 = 1/1140

4. John has to select two students from a class of 10 girls and 15 boys. What is the probability
that both students chosen are boys?

Solution:
Total number of students = 10 + 15 =25
Probability of choosing the first boy, say P(Boy 1) = 15/25
P(Boy 2|Boy 1) = 14/24
P(Boy1 and Boy2) = P(Boy 1) and P(Boy 2|Boy 1) = (15/25)×(14/24) = 7/20

Independent events
Independent events do not affect one another and do not increase or decrease the probability of
another. Examples of pairs of independent events include:
• Taking an Uber ride and getting a free meal at your favorite restaurant
• Winning a card game and running out of bread
• Finding a cedi on the street and buying a betting ticket
• Growing the perfect tomato and owning a cat

The Rule of products is only applicable to the events that are independent of each other. The
product gives the total probability of such events. In other words, the probability of all such
events occurring is what we get from the product of probabilities.
Condition 1: If A and B are independent events, then P(A│B) = P(A)
Condition 2: Using Multiplication rule of probability, P(A∩B) = P(B).P(A│B)
Therefore, P(A∩B) = P(B). P(A)

17
Examples
1. What is the probability of 7 heads in a row?

Solution
1/2×1/2×1/2×1/2×1/2×1/2×1/2 = 0.0078125

2. If A is the event ‘the number appearing is greater than 3’ and B be the event ‘the number
appearing is a multiple of 3’, are the two events independent?

Solution
P(A)= 3/6 = 1/2 here favorable outcomes are {4,5,6}
P(B) = 2/6 = 1/3 here favourable outcomes are {3,6}
P(A∩ B) = 1/6
P(A│B) = P(A∩ B)/P(B) = (1/6)/(1/3) = 1/2
P(A) = P(A│B) = 1/2

This implies that the occurrence of event B has not affected the probability of occurrence of
the event A.

3. A bag contains 5 red and 5 blue balls. We remove a random ball from the bag, record its
colour and put it back into the bag. We then remove another random ball from the bag and
record its colour.
(a) What is the probability that the first ball is red?
(b) What is the probability that the second ball is blue?
(c) What is the probability that the first ball is red and the second ball is blue?
(d) Are the first ball being red and the second ball being blue independent events?

Solutions
a). Probability of a red ball first
Since there are a total of 10 balls, of which 5 are red, the probability of getting a red ball is
P(first ball red)=5/10=1/2

b). Probability of a blue ball second

The problem states that the first ball is placed back into the bag before we take the second ball.
This means that when we draw the second ball, there are again a total of 10 balls in the bag, of
which 5 are blue. Therefore the probability of drawing a blue ball is P(second ball
blue)=5/10=1/2

c). Probability of red first and blue second

When drawing two balls from the bag, there are 4 possibilities:
• a red ball and then another red ball;
• a red ball and then a blue ball;
• a blue ball and then a red ball;
• a blue ball and then another blue ball.

The probability of the second outcome, where we have to get a red ball first. Since there
are 5 red balls and 10 balls in total, there are 5/10 ways to get a red ball first.
Now we put the first ball back, so there are again 5 red balls and 5 blue balls in the bag.
Therefore there are 5/10×5/10 ways to get a blue ball second if the first ball was red.

18
This means that there are 5/10×5/10=25/100 =25/100 ways to get a red ball first and a blue ball
second.
So, the probability of getting a red ball first and a blue ball second is 1/4.

d). Dependent or independent?

Events are independent if and only if P(A and B)=P(A)×P(B)P(A and B)=P(A)×P(B)
But P(first ball red)=1/2
P(second ball blue)=1/2
P(first ball red and second ball blue)=1/4
Since 1/4=12×12, then the events are independent.

NOTE: Just because two events are mutually exclusive does not necessarily mean that they are
independent.
• To test whether events are mutually exclusive, always check that P(A and B) = 0
• To test whether events are independent, always check that P(A and B) = P(A)×P(B)

Activity 3.1
1. Out of the following examples, which represents an independent event? Explain your
answer.
A). The probability of drawing an Ace from a well-shuffled pack of 52 cards, twice.
B). Probability of drawing a King from a pack of 52 cards and an Ace from another well-
shuffled pack of 52 cards.
C). Two queens which we draw out of a well-shuffled pack of 52 cards.
D). All of the above events are examples of independent events.

Solution
In option A), the two of events are drawing an ace and then drawing another ace. When we
draw the first ace, we have one event in our favour and 52 in total. So the probability is 1/52.
For the second draw, there is 1 less card in the deck, so these events in which we have only one
pack of cards cannot be independent events.

In option B), Probability of drawing a King from a pack of 52 cards and an Ace from another
well-shuffled pack of 52 cards are independent events.

In option C), the two of events are drawing a queen and then drawing another queen. When we
draw the first queen, we have one event in our favour and 52 in total. So the probability is 1/52.
For the second draw, there is 1 less card in the deck, so these events in which we have only one
pack of cards cannot be independent events.

In option D), not true those of the above events are independent events.

2. A tyre manufacturing company kept a record of the distance covered before a tyre needed to
be replaced. The table shows the results of 1000 cases.

19
 Distance (in km) Less than 4000 4000- 9000 9001-14000 More than 14000

Frequency 20 210 325 445

If a tyre is bought from this company, what is the probability that :

(i) it has to be substituted before 4000 km is covered?
(ii) it will last more than 9000 km?
(iii) it has to be replaced after 4000 km and 14000 km is covered by it?

Solution
(i) Total number of trials = 1000.

The frequency of a tyre required to be replaced before covering 4000 km = 20

So, P(E1) = 20/1000 = 0.02

(ii) The frequency that tyre will last more than 9000 km = 325 + 445 = 770
So, P(E2) = 770/1000 = 0.77

(iii) The frequency that tyre requires replacement between 4000 km and 14000 km = 210 + 325
= 535.
So, P(E3) = 535/1000 = 0.535.

3. The percentage of marks obtained by a student in the monthly tests are given below:
Test 1 2 3 4 5

Percentage 69 71 73 68 74

Based on the above table, find the probability of students getting more than 70% marks in a
test.

Solution:
The total number of tests conducted is 5.
The number of tests when students obtained more than 70% marks = 3.
So, P(scoring more than 70% marks) = ⅗ = 0.6

SUMMARY
Dear Student Teachers,
We have learned that two events are independent if the occurrence of the second event does
not depend on the occurrence of the first event. However, if the events are dependent then the
occurrence of the second event depends on the occurrence of the first event. Can you create
your own dependent and independent events and solve the problems in them? Congratulations!

20
UNIT 3 SECTION 4 PROBABILITY WITH REPLACEMENT AND WITHOUT
REPLACEMENT EVENTS

INTRODUCTION
Dear student-teachers,
We learned the basic concepts of an experiment, an outcome and an event. We also learned the
axioms of probability, compound events, mutually exclusive or mutually inclusive,
independent or dependent, and nonmutually exclusive or complementary events. In the
language of mathematics, we can say that all those events whose probability does not depend
on the occurrence or non-occurrence of another event are independent events. For example, if
we have two coins and if we flip these two coins together, then each one of them can either
turn up a head or a tail and the probability of one coin turning either a head or a tail is totally
independent of the probability of the other coin turning up a head or a tail. In this section, we
are going to learned basic concepts in dependents events with replacements and events without
replacements and the total probability rule.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate value as well • Both tutors and student-teachers do individual
as respect equity and reflection on their knowledge of probability with
inclusivity as well as core replacement and without replacement.
skills in teaching and • Identify and reflect on core skills applied in
learning probability with probability with replacement and without
replacement and without replacement events in the mathematics classroom.
replacement events • Appreciate the contributions of, and supports,
(knowledge)(NTS, 2f) colleagues in probability with replacement and
without replacement in the mathematics classroom.
• Cooperate with colleagues in carrying out
probability with replacement and without
replacement tasks in Dependent Events.
• Engage in reflective thinking about how probability
with replacement and without replacement events
were taught in student-basic and high school days.

Probability with replacement events

Suppose you flip a coin and roll a die at the same time. These are compound events. What is
the probability you will flip a head and roll a four? These events are independent. Rolling a die
has no effect on flipping a coin, and so replacing the dice or not does not affect the probability
of the coin.

To find the probability of two dependent events with replacement, multiply the probability of
the first event by the probability of the second event, after the first event occurs.
P(A and B)=P(A×P(B). The total remains the same.

Probability without replacement events

However, suppose you randomly draw a card from a standard deck and then randomly draw a
second card without replacing the first. The second probability is now different from the first
and depends on the first.

21
If the first card is replaced, then the probabilities of the two events will be the same. However,
if the second card is not replaced, then the probability of the two will differ since the total deck
of cards will be reduced accordingly.

To find the probability of two dependent events without replacement, multiply the probability
of the first event by the probability of the second event, after the first event occurs.
P(A and B)=P(A×P(B/A). The total will always be affected.

Activity 4.1
1. A bowl contains 12 red marbles, 5 blue marbles and 13 yellow marbles. Find the probability
of drawing a blue marble and then drawing a yellow marble.

Solution
Let A=blue marble chosen 1st and B=yellow marble chosen 2nd. The total number of marbles
in the bowl is 12+5+13=30.
P(A)=5/30, and P(B)=13/29 (Remember, one marble has been removed).
P(A and B)=5/30×13/29 or P(A∩B)=5/30×13/29=65/870 or P(A∩B)=13/174

2. 𝐴 and 𝐵 are independent events, where (𝐴)=13 and 𝑃(𝐵)=25. What is the probability that
events 𝐴 and 𝐵 both occur?

Solution
Given that events 𝐴 and 𝐵 are independent, the probability that they both occur is
(𝐴∩𝐵)=𝑃(𝐴)×𝑃(𝐵)=1/3×2/5=2/15.
4). A bag contains 22 red balls and 9 green balls. One red ball is removed from the bag and
then a ball is drawn at random. Find the probability that the drawn ball is red.

Solution
To find the probability of drawing a second red ball from the bag, we note first that since there
are 22 red balls and 9 green ones, there are 22+9=31 balls in total.
The probability of drawing a red ball from the bag on our first pick is, therefore, 𝑃(R)==22/31.
That is, red number of red balls total number of balls

Since we are keeping the first ball out of the bag, there is one less ball in the bag in total, so
there are now 30 balls in the bag. And of those 30, there is one less red since the ball we took
out was red.

Hence, the number of red balls is now 21.

To help us work out the probability of drawing a second red ball from the bag, we can illustrate
the probability of taking a second red ball having not replaced the first is found by multiplying
the probabilities of the “first ball red” and “second ball red”: 𝑃(∩) = 22/31×21/30 =77/155 ≈
0.497.

The probability that the second ball drawn is red is therefore 0.497. We can say that there is
approximately a 50% chance of choosing two consecutive red balls
(since 0.497×100%=49.7%).

Note that we have actually used the formula for compound dependent
events: (𝐴∩𝐵)=𝑃(𝐴∣𝐵)×𝑃(𝐵).

22
The probability 21/30 is the conditional probability of selecting a red ball given that a red ball
has already been taken from the bag:

3. Two coins are flipped simultaneously. What is the probability of getting heads on either of these
coins?

Solution
First thing that you realise is that these are independent events. Once you do that, move on to find
the probability of each individual event.

Let us call the first coin toss as E and the second coin toss as F. Therefore we can write: P (E) =
1/2 i.e. probability of getting a head on the first coin toss = 1/2.

Similarly, the probability of getting a head on the second coin’s toss = 1/2. In other words, we can
write that P (F) = 1/2.
Now we have to calculate the probability of both these events happening together. Hence we use
the rule of the product. If P is the probability of some event and Q is the probability of another
event, then the probability of both P and Q happening together is P×Q.
Hence the probability that either of the two coins will turn up a head = 1/2 × 1/2 = 1/4

4. A die is cast twice and a coin is tossed twice. What is the probability that the die will turn a 6
each time and the coin will turn a tail every time?

Solution
Each time the die is cast, it is an independent event. The probability of a getting a 6 is = 1/6. So
the probability of getting a 6 when the die is cast twice = 1/6 × 1/6 = 1/36

Similarly the probability of getting a tail in two flips that follow each other (are independent) =
(1/2)×(1/2) = 1/4
Therefore as the two events i.e. casting the die and tossing the coin are independent, and the
probability of both the events = (1/36)×(1/4) = 1/144.

5. If one has three dice what is the probability of getting three 4s?

Solution
The probability of getting a 4 on one die is 1/6
The probability of getting three 4s is: P(4 and 4 and 4) =1/6×1/6×1/6=1/216
When the outcome affects the second outcome, which is what we called dependent events.

6. What is the probability for you to choose two red cards in a deck of cards?

Solution
A deck of cards has 26 black and 26 red cards. The probability of choosing a red card randomly
is: P(red)=26/52=1/2
The probability of choosing a second red card from the deck is now: P(red)=25/51
The probability: P(2red)=1/2×25/51=25/102

23
Activity 4.2
1. In a sample of 43 students:
15 had brown hair.
10 had black hair.
16 had blond hair.
2 had red hair.

Use a frequency distribution table to find the probability a person has neither red nor blond
hair.

Solution
Step 1: Make a frequency distribution table.

List the items in one column and the number of items in a second column. In this case, your
items are hair colors: brown, black, blond, red.
Type Frequency
Brown 15
Black 10
Blond 16
Red 2

Tip: If you have a large number of items, use tally marks to help you find the total.

Step 2: Add up the totals.

In the sample question we’re asked for the odds a person will not have blond or red hair. In
other words, we want to know the probability of a person having black or brown hair.
Note that you are told in the question there are 43 students in the class.
Brown = 15/43 (15 out of 43 students have brown hair).
Black = 10/43 (10 out of 43 students have black hair).
Add these together to get the total number of students who have brown or black hair.
15/43 + 10/43 = 25/43 (25 out of 43 students have either brown or black hair).

2. This two-way table displays data for the sample of students who responded to the survey:
Superpower Male Female Total
Fly 26 12 38
Invisibility 12 32 44
Other 10 8 18
Total 48 52 100

a. Find the probability that the student chose to fly as their superpower.
Superpower Male Female TOTAL

Fly 26 12 38
Invisibility 12 32 44
Other 10 8 18

24
 Superpower Male Female TOTAL
Total 48 52 100

There were 38 out of students 100 total students.

P(fly) = 38/100 = 0.38

b. Find the probability that the student was male.

There were 48 students in the sample who were male out of 100 total students.
P(male) = 48/100 = 0.48

c. Find the probability that the student was male, given the student chose to fly as their
superpower.

Method 1: Intuitive way

The condition is that the student chose to fly as their superpower. There were students in the
sample who chose to fly, and 38 male students
P(male/fly) = 26/38 = 0.68

3. A man has 9 identical balls in a bag . Out of these , 3 are black , 2 are blue and the remaining
are Red. (a) if a ball is drawn at random , what is the probability that is (I) not blue? (ii) not red
(b) if 2 balls are drawn at random , one after the other , what is the probability that both of them
(I) black , if there is no replacement? (I) blue, if there is a replacement.

Solution
Total number of possible outcomes = 9
No of black (B) = 3
No of blue (b) =2
No of Red (R) = 9-(3+2) = 4

Pr = the required number of outcomes/total number of possible outcomes

(I) the probability that is not blue =

Pr(blue) + pr(not blue) = 1
Success failure
2/9 + pr(not blue) = 1
Pr(not blue) = 1-2/9 =7/9
Probability that is not blue = 7/9

(ii). The probability that is not Red

Pr(Red) + pr(not Red) = 1
4/9 + pr(not Red) = 1
Pr(not Red) = 1-4/9 = 5/9
The probability that is not Red = 5/9
(B)

(I) probability of both are black (B) without

replacement = 3/9×2/8 = 6/72= 1/12

(ii) probability of both are blue with replacement = 2/9×2/9= 4/81

25
4. A man has 9 identical balls in a bag . Out of these, 3 are black, 2 are blue and the remaining
are Red.
(a) if a ball is drawn at random , what is the probability that is
(i) not blue?
(ii) not red

(b) if 2 balls are drawn at random , one after the other, what is the probability that both of them
(i) black , if there is no replacement?
(ii) blue, if there is a replacement.

Solution
Total number of possible outcomes = 9
No of black (B) = 3
No of blue (b) =2
No of Red (R) = 9-(3+2) = 4
Pr = the required number of outcomes/total number of possible outcomes
(I) the probability that is not blue =
Pr(blue) + pr(not blue) = 1
Success failure
2/9 + pr(not blue) = 1
Pr(not blue) = 1-2/9 =7/9
Probability that is not blue = 7/9

(ii). The probability that is not Red

Pr(Red) + pr(not Red) = 1
4/9 + pr(not Red) = 1
Pr(not Red) = 1-4/9 = 5/9
The probability that is not Red = 5/9
(B)
(I) probability of both are black (B) without
replacement = 3/9×2/8 = 6/72= 1/12

(ii) probability of both are blue with replacement = 2/9×2/9= 4/81

SUMMARY
In this section, we have learned that to find the probability of two dependent events, multiply
the probability of the first event by the probability of the second event, after the first event
occurs. That is, P(A and B)=P(A)⋅P(B/A). In without replacement, the total is affected.

26
UNIT 3 SECTION 5 PROBABILITY WITH TREE DIAGRAMS AND CONDITIONAL
PROBABILITY

INTRODUCTION
Dear Students,
In this unit 3 section 3, we learned the basic concepts of dependent and independent events and
their applications to real life situations. In this section, we are going to learn conditional
probability using the tree diagrams and their applications to real life situations. We are going
to extend the tree diagrams to Bayes theorem and solve practical problems

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate awareness of • Reflect and show how student-teachers’ mathematics
socio-cultural issues in history influences their views of probability with tree
teaching and learning diagrams and conditional probability and its learning.
mathematics in teaching • Identify appropriate TLMs for teaching topics in
and learning probability probability with tree diagrams and conditional
with tree diagrams and probability.
conditional probability • Identify and use manipulates in probability with tree
(knowledge) (NTS, 2f). diagrams and conditional probability lessons
• Make connections between mathematical concepts
in Bayes Theorem and applying them to solve real-
life problems.

Tree and Venn Diagrams

Sometimes, when the probability problems are complex, it can be helpful to graph the situation.
Tree diagrams and Venn diagrams are two tools that can be used to visualize and solve
conditional probabilities.

A tree diagram is a special type of graph used to determine the outcomes of an experiment. It
consists of ‘branches’ that are labelled with either frequencies or probabilities.
Tree diagrams can make some probability problems easier to visualize and solve. The
following example illustrates how to use a tree diagram.

Activity 5.1
1. In an urn, there are 11 balls. Three balls are red (R) and eight balls are blue (B). Draw two
balls, one at a time, with replacement. With replacement means that you put the first ball back
in the urn before you select the second ball. The tree diagram using frequencies that show all
the possible outcomes follows.

27
Figure 5.1: Sample example of the tree diagram

Solution
On the diagram, the first set of branches represents the first draw. The second set of branches
represents the second draw. Each of the outcomes is distinct.

In fact, we can list each red ball as R1, R2, and R3 and each blue ball as B1, B2, B3, B4, B5,
B6, B7, and B8.

Then the nine RR outcomes can be written as: R1R1; R1R2; R1R3; R2R1; R2R2; R2R3; R3R1;
R3R2; R3R3.

The other outcomes are similar.

There are a total of 11 balls in the urn. Draw two balls, one at a time, with replacement. There
are 11(11) = 121 outcomes, the size of the sample space.

a. List the 24 BR outcomes: B1R1, B1R2, B1R3, ...

Solution
a. B1R1; B1R2; B1R3; B2R1; B2R2; B2R3; B3R1; B3R2; B3R3; B4R1; B4R2; B4R3; B5R1;
B5R2; B5R3; B6R1; B6R2; B6R3; B7R1; B7R2; B7R3; B8R1; B8R2; B8R3

b. Using the tree diagram, calculate P(RR).

Solution
b. P(RR) = (3/11)(3/11)=9/121

c. Using the tree diagram, calculate P(RB OR BR):

Solution
P(RB OR BR)=(3/11)(8/11)+(8/11)(3/11)=48/121

28
d. Using the tree diagram, calculate P(R on 1st draw AND B on 2nd draw).

Solution
P(R on 1st draw AND B on 2nd draw) = P(RB) = (3/11)(8/11)=24/121

e. Using the tree diagram, calculate P(R on 2nd draw GIVEN B on 1st draw).

Solution
P(R on 2nd draw GIVEN B on 1st draw) = P(R on 2nd|B on 1st) = 24/88=3/11
This problem is a conditional one. The sample space has been reduced to those outcomes that
already have a blue on the first draw. There are 24 + 64 = 88 possible outcomes (24 BR and 64
BB). Twenty-four of the 88 possible outcomes are BR. 24/88 = 3/11 .

f. Using the tree diagram, calculate P(BB).

Solution
f. P(BB) = 64/121
Using the tree diagram, calculate P(B on the 2nd draw given R on the first draw).

Solution
g. P(B on 2nd draw|R on 1st draw) = 8/11
There are 9 + 24 outcomes that have R on the first draw (9 RR and 24 RB). The sample space
is then 9 + 24 = 33.
24 of the 33 outcomes have B on the second draw. The probability is then 24/33=8/11 .

2. Calculate the following probabilities using the tree diagram below:

Figure 5.2: Sample example of the tree diagram II

a. P(RR) = (3/11)(2/10) = 6/110 =2/55

b. P(RB OR BR) = (3/11)(8/10)+(8/11)(3/10)=48/110=24/55

29
c. P(R on 2nd|B on 1st) = 3/10

d. P(R on 1st AND B on 2nd) = (3/11)(8/10)= 24/110=12/55

e. P(BB) = (8/11)(7/10)=56/110=28/55

a. P(B on 2nd|R on 1st) = P(R|B) = 8/10

The Venn diagram

Figure 5.3: Sample three-set Venn diagram

A Venn diagram is a schematic representation of the elements in a set or a group. The diagram
shows all the possible logical relationships between a finite assemblage of sets or groups.

Activity 5.2
Out of 40 students, 14 are taking English and 29 are taking Chemistry.
a. If five students are in both classes, how many students are in neither class?
b. How many are in either class?
c. What is the probability that a randomly-chosen student from this group is taking
only the Chemistry class?

Solution
b). There are two classifications in this universe: English students and Mathematics students.
First, draw the universal set for the 40 students, with two overlapping circles labelled with the
total in each:

30
Figure 5.4: Sample example of mutually exclusive events I

Five students are taking both classes, so ‘5’ in the overlap:

Figure 5.5: Sample example of mutually exclusive events II

We have now accounted for five of the 14 English students, leaving nine students taking
English but not Chemistry, so we put ‘9’ in the ‘English only’ part of the ‘English’ circle:

Figure 5.6: Sample example of mutually exclusive events III

We have also accounted for five of the 29 Chemistry students, leaving 24 students taking
Chemistry but not English, so we put ‘24’ in the ‘Chemistry only’ part of the ‘Chemistry’
circle:

31
Figure 5.7: Sample example of mutually exclusive events IV

a). This tells us that a total of 9 + 5 + 24 = 38 students are in either English or Chemistry (or
both).

c). This also leaves two students unaccounted for, so they must be the ones taking neither
class, which is the answer to part (a) of this exercise we ‘2’ inside the box, but outside the
two circles:

Figure 5.8: Sample example of mutually exclusive events V

The probability that a given student is taking Chemistry but not English: Out of the forty
students, 24 are taking Chemistry but not English, which gives me a probability of:
− 24
Pr ob(C  E ) = = 0.6 = 60%
40 . There is a 60% probability that a randomly-chosen student in
this group is taking Chemistry but not English.

Conditional Probability
Dear Students,
Suppose we know that a certain event ‘B’ has occurred. How does this impact the probability
of some other ‘A’. This question is addressed by conditional probabilities. We write it as
P(A|B), the conditional probability of A given B.
P( A  B )
The conditional probability of A given B is expressed as P( A / B ) = .
P (B )
It is also useful to think of this formula P(A ∩ B) = P(A|B)P(B).

Thus, in Conditioning, P(A) = P(A|B)P(B) + P(A|B)P(B).

32
More generally we can condition on a collection of n events provided they are pairwise disjoint
and add up to all the sample space as P(A) = P(A|B1)P(B1) + P(A|B2)P(B2) + · · · +
P(A|Bn)P(Bn)

Bayes’ Theorem
Dear Students,
Bayes Theorem is a theorem in probability theory named for Thomas Bayes (1702-1761). In
epidemiology, it is used to obtain the probability of disease in a group of people with some
characteristic on the basis of the overall rate of that disease and of the likelihoods of that
characteristic in healthy and diseased individuals.

The most familiar application is in clinical decision analysis where it is used for estimating the
probability of a particular diagnosis given the appearance of some symptoms or test result.

Bayes’ theorem is a way to figure out conditional probability. Conditional probability is the
probability of an event happening, given that it has some relationship to one or more other
events. For example, your probability of getting a sitting place in the lecture room is connected
to the time of the day you come to lectures, where you sit, and what conventions are going on
at any time.

Bayes’ theorem is slightly more nuanced. In a nutshell, it gives you the actual probability of
an event given information about tests.

P(B / A)P( A)
Mathematically, P( A / B ) =
P (B )
Example
1. If P(A) = 7/13, P(B) = 9/13 and P(A∩B) = 4/13, evaluate P(A|B).

Solution
P(A|B) = P(A∩B)/P(B) = (4/13)/(9/13) = 4/9.

Activity 5.4
1. In a particular pain clinic, 10% of patients are prescribed narcotic pain killers. Overall, five
percent of the clinic’s patients are addicted to narcotics (including pain killers and illegal
substances). Out of all the people prescribed pain pills, 8% are addicts. If a patient is an addict,
what is the probability that they will be prescribed pain pills?

Solution
Step 1: Figure out what your event “A” is from the question. That information is in the
italicized part of this particular question. The event that happens first (A) is being prescribed
pain pills. That’s given as 10%.

Step 2: Figure out what your event “B” is from the question. That information is also in the
italicized part of this particular question. Event B is being an addict. That’s given as 5%.

Step 3: Figure out what the probability of event B (Step 2) given event A (Step 1).

33
In other words, find what (B|A) is. We want to know “Given that people are prescribed pain
pills, what is the probability they are an addict?” That is given in the question as 8%, or .8.

Step 4: Insert your answers from Steps 1, 2 and 3 into the formula and solve.
P(A|B) = P(B|A) * P(A) / P(B) = (0.08 * 0.1)/0.05 = 0.16
Therefore, the probability of an addict being prescribed pain pills is 0.16 or 16%.

2. A doctor is called to see a sick child. The doctor has prior information that 90% of sick
children in that neighbourhood have the flu, while the other 10% are sick with measles.

Let F stand for an event of a child being sick with flu and M stand for an event of a child being
sick with measles. Assume for simplicity that F ∪ M = Ω, i.e., there are no other maladies in
that neighbourhood. A well-known symptom of measles is a rash (the event of having which
we denote R).

Assume that the probability of having a rash if one has measles is P(R | M) = 0.95. However,
occasionally children with flu also develop rash, and the probability of having a rash if one has
flu is P(R | F) = 0.08. Upon examining the child, the doctor finds a rash.

What is the probability that the child has measles?

Solution
We use Bayes’s formula P(M / R ) =
P( R / M ) P( M )
P( R / M ) P( M ) + P( R / F ) P( F )
0.95  0.10
This becomes P (M / R ) = = 0.57
0.95  0.10 + 0.08  0.90

3. Suppose we have 3 cards identical in form except that both sides of the first card are coloured
red, both sides of the second card are coloured black, and one side of the third card is coloured
red and the other side is coloured black. The 3 cards are mixed up in a hat, and 1 card is
randomly selected and put down on the ground.

If the upper side of the chosen card is coloured red, what is the probability that the other side
is coloured black?

Solution
Let RR, BB, and RB denote, respectively, the events that the chosen cars is the red-red, the
black-black, or the red-black card.

Letting R be the event that the upturned side of the chosen card is red, then we obtain,
P( RR)  P( R)
P(RB / R ) =
P( R / RB) P( RM )
=
P( R) P( R / RR) P( RR) + PR / RBP ( RB) + PR / BB) P( BB)

P(RB / R ) =
(1 / 2)(1 / 3) 1
=
(1)(1 / 3) + (1 / 2)(1 / 3) + (0)(1 / 3) 3

34
SUMMARY
In this section, we have learned how to use the tree diagrams to solve problems in probability.
We hope we have all enjoyed the two problems we have solved above?
We have also learned that conditional probability of A given B is expressed as
P( A  B )
P( A / B ) = .
P (B )
Again, we have learned that Bayes’ theorem gives you the actual probability of event ‘A’ given
P(B / A)P( A)
event ‘B’ as P( A / B ) = .
P (B )
Can you create your own problems and use the two theorems to solve them?

Congratulations!

35
 UNIT 3 SECTION 6 PROBABILITY WITH COUNTING PRINCIPLES
Dear Student-Teachers,
Mathematics began with counting. Initially, fingers, pebbles, sticks and bottle tops were used
to help with counting, but these are only practical for small numbers. What happens when a
large number of items must be counted? Therefore, this section focuses on how to use
mathematical techniques to count different assortments of items.

The two main events in counting principles are permutations and combinations.
1. What did we say about permutations?
2. What did we say about combinations?

Thank you for recalling these two important concepts in probability.

In this section, we are going to learn how to solve problems in probability using permutations
and combinations.
Take your pens, calculators and jotters and let’s go!

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate deep • Select and use the most appropriate mathematical method(s) or
understanding of key heuristics in carrying out tasks/exercises/problems in Counting
mathematical concepts in Principles within the basic education mathematics foundation list.
probability with counting • Make connections between mathematical concepts Counting
principles in the basic Principles content domains and applying them to solve real-life
school mathematics problems.
curriculum (professional • Identify and resolve mathematics related learning difficulties
values, knowledge & within Counting Principles’ content domains such as inability to
visualise geometrical shapes.
practice) (NTS, 2b)
• Solve mathematics problems using manipulatives and/or
technology related strategies in a variety of ways.

The Fundamental Counting Principles

In counting, the use of lists, tables and tree diagrams is only feasible for events with a few
outcomes. When the number of outcomes grows, it is not practical to list the different
possibilities and the fundamental counting principle is used instead.

The fundamental counting principle states that if there are n( A) outcomes in

event A and n(B ) outcomes in event B, then there are n( A)  n(B ) outcomes in event A and
event B combined.

Example
Given A = 1,2,3,4,5,8 and B = 5,7,9
Then n( A) = 6 and n(B ) = 3
Therefore, n( A)  n(B ) = 6  3 = 18

36
Choices without Repetition
If there are n1 possible outcomes for event A and n 2 outcomes for event B, then the total
possible number of outcomes for both events is n1  n2 .

This can further be generalised to k events, where k is the number of events. The total number
of outcomes for k events is:
n1  n 2  n3  ...  n k .

Activity 6.1
1. What is the total number of possible outcomes when a die is rolled and then a coin is tossed?

Solution
The roll of a die has six possible outcomes (1;2;3;4;5; 6) and the toss of a coin, 2 outcomes
(heads or tails).
The sample space (total possible outcomes) can be represented as follows:
S={(1;H); (1;T); (2;H); (2;T);(3;H);(3;T);(4;H);(4;T);(5;H);(5;T);(6;H);(6;T)}
S={(1;H); (2;H); (3;H); (4;H);(5;H);(6;H); (1;T);(2;T);(3;T);(4;T);(5;T);(6;T)}
Therefore there are 12 possible outcomes.
In other words, n( A)  n(B) = 6  2 = 12

2. A restaurant has a 4-piece lunch special which consists of a sandwich, soup, dessert and
drink for 50.00 Ghana cedis. They offer the following choices for:
Sandwich: chicken mayonnaise, cheese and tomato, tuna mayonnaise, ham and lettuce
Soup: tomato, chicken noodle, vegetable
Dessert: ice-cream, piece of cake
Drink: tea, coffee, Coke, Fanta, Sprite
a). How many parts are there in the meal?
b). How many possible meals are there?

Solution
a). There are 4 parts: sandwich, soup, dessert and drink.
b). The possible number of meals:
Meal component Sandwich Soup Dessert Drink

Number of choices 4 3 2 5

Using the fundamental counting principle, the possible different meals are:
n1  n 2  n3  n 4 = 4  3  2  5 = 120
So there are 120 possible meals.

3. If a coin is flipped three times, what is the total number of different results?

Solution

37
Each time a coin is flipped, there are two possible outcomes, namely heads or tails. The coin
is flipped 3 times. We that there is a total of 8 different possible outcomes.

NB: Drawing a tree diagram is possible to draw for three different coin flips, but as soon as the
number of events increases, the total number of possible outcomes increases to the point where
drawing a tree diagram is impractical.

4. What is the total if we flip a coin six times.

Solution
In this case, using the fundamental counting principle is a far easier option.
We know that each time a coin is flipped that there are two possible outcomes.

So if we flip a coin six times, the total number of possible outcomes is equivalent to multiplying
2 by itself six times.
Therefore, 2×2×2×2×2×2=26=64

5. Diana packed 2 skirts, 4 blouses, and 1 sweater to go to school. She will need to choose a
skirt and a blouse for each outfit and decide whether to wear the sweater depending on the
weather conditions. Find the total number of possible outfits.

Solution
To find the total number of outfits, we need to find the product of the number of skirt options,
the number of blouse options, and the number of sweater options as shown below:

Number of Skirt options Number of Blouse options Number of Sweater options

2 4 1

n1  n 2  n3 = 4  2  1 = 8
Hence,

There are 16 possible outfits.

The factorial (!)

Factorial, in mathematics, the product of all positive integers less than or equal to a given
positive integer and denoted by that integer and an exclamation point. Thus, factorial seven is
written 7!, meaning 1 × 2 × 3 × 4 × 5 × 6 × 7.

In more general terms, the factorial of a non-negative integer n, denoted by n!, is the product of
all positive integers less than or equal to n: n×(n-1)×(n-2)×(n-3)×… ×3×2×1.
Note that the 1! is 1 and 0! and also 1

The factorial is very important in learning and teaching permutations and combinations.

38
Choices with Repetition
If we have the letters A, B, C, and D and we wish to discover the number of ways of arranging
them in three-letter patterns if repetition is allowed, such as ABA, DCA, BBB, etc., we will
find that there are 64 ways.

This is because for the first letter of the pattern, we can choose any of the four available letters,
for the second letter of the pattern, we can choose any of the four letters, and for the final letter
of the pattern, we can choose any of the four letters.

Multiplying the number of available choices for each letter in the pattern gives the total
available arrangements of letters: 4×4×4=43=64

This allows us to formulate the following: when you have n objects to choose from and you
choose from them r times, then the total number of possibilities is
n  n  n  ...  n(r times) = n .
r

Activity 6.2
1. A school plays a series of 6 soccer matches. For each match there are 3 possibilities: a win,
a draw or a loss. How many possible results are there for the series?

Solution
Step 1: We will determine how many outcomes to choose from for each event:
There are 3 outcomes for each match: win, draw or lose (n).

Step 2: We will determine the number of events:

There are 6 matches, so the number of events is 6 (n).

Step 3: We will determine the total number of possible outcomes

There are 3 (r) possible outcomes for each of the 6 events. Therefore, the total number of
possible outcomes for the series of matches is nr =63 = 6×6×6 = 216

Permutations of n Distinct Objects

The multiplication principle can be used to solve a variety of problem types. One type of
problem involves placing objects in order.

Our daily applications are arranging letters into words and digits into numbers, lining up for
photographs, and decorating rooms. An ordering of such objects is called a permutation.

To solve permutation problems, it is often helpful to draw line segments for each option to
enables us determine the number of each option to multiply. For instance, suppose we have
four paintings, and we want to find the number of ways we can hang three of the paintings in
order on the wall. We can draw three lines to represent the three places on the wall.

Procedure for a permutation

39
 • Determine how many options there are for the first situation.
• Determine how many options are left for the second situation.
• Continue until all of the spots are filled.
• Multiply the numbers together.

Activity 6.3
1. At a swimming competition, nine swimmers compete in a race.
a. How many ways can they place first, second, and third?
b. How many ways can they place first, second, and third if a swimmer named Aba wins
first place? (Assume there is only one contestant named Aba.)
c. How many ways can all nine swimmers line up for a photo?

Solution

a. Draw lines for each place.

Options for first place x options for second place x options for third place

There are 9 options for first place. Once someone has won first place, there are 8 remaining
options for second place. Once first and second place have been won, there are 7 remaining
options for third place.

Therefore, 9  8  7 = 504

Multiply to find that there are 504 ways for the swimmers to place.

b. Draw horizontal for describing each place.

Options for first place x options for second place x options for third place

We know Aba must win first place, so there is only 1 option for first place. There
are 8 remaining options for second place, and then 7 remaining options for third place.

1 x 8 x 7 = 56

Multiply to find that there are 56 ways for the swimmers to place if Ariel wins first.

c. Draw two horizontal lines for describing each place.

There are 9 choices for the first spot, then 8 for the second, 7 for the third, 6 for the fourth, and
so on until only 1 person remains for the last spot.
9 x 8 x 7 x 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 362,880

There are 362,880 possible permutations for the swimmers to line up.

Permutations of n Distinct Objects Using a Formula

40
If there are so many numbers to multiply as in example 1c above, it is inconvenient to use the
Multiplication Principle.
There are two common notations for this permutation, namely P(n, r ) or n Pr , where n is the
set of objects and we want to choose r objects from the n set in order.

n!
The general formula is as n Pr =
(n − r )!

Procedures
• We begin by finding n!, the number of ways to line up all n objects.
• We then divide by (n−r)!
• We cancel out the (n−r)! items that we do not wish to line up.
• We then obtain the actual number we wish to line up

Examples
1. At a swimming competition, nine swimmers compete in a race. How many ways can they
place first, second, and third?
Solution
9! 9!
n Pr = = = 9  8  7 = 504
(9 − 3)! 6!
Again, we can confirm that there are 9 options for first place. Once someone has won first
place, there are 8 remaining options for second place. Once first and second place have been
won, there are 7 remaining options for third place.

2. Imagine that six students have formed a study group, and they need to elect a president, a
vice president, and a treasurer. How many possible ways can they do this exercise fairly to
everyone in the group?

Solution
Any of the six students could be elected president, any one of the five remaining students could
be elected vice president, and any of the remaining four students could be elected treasurer.

We know that the number of ways this may be done is 6×5×4=120.

6! 6  5  4  3!
However, in the using factorials, we get the same result as: n Pr = = = 120
3! 3!
NB: The formula stills works if we are choosing all n objects and placing them in order. In that
case we would be dividing by (n − n )! or 0 ! , which is 1. So the number of permutations
of n objects taken n at a time is n!.

3. A mathematics professor is creating an exam of 9 questions from a test bank of 12 questions.

How many ways can she select and arrange the questions?

Solution
Substitute n=12 and r=9 into the permutation formula and simplify.

41
 12! 12!
n Pr = = = 79,833,600
(12 − 9)! 3!
Combinations of n Distinct Objects Using the Formula

Counting by Combinations
So far, we have looked at problems asking us to put objects in order. There are many problems
in which we want to select a few objects from a group of objects, but we do not care about the
order. When we are selecting objects and the order does not matter, we are dealing
with combinations.
A selection of r objects from a set of n objects where the order does not matter can be written
as C (n, r ) or nCr
n!
In this case, the general formula is C (n, r ) = .
(n − r )! r!
• Identify n from the given information.
• Identify r from the given information.
• Replace n and r in the formula with the given values.
• Evaluate the formula

Examples
1. How many ways can a painter select 3 colours out of 4 for a building if order is not
considered?

Solution
If we do not care about the order, we would expect a smaller number because selecting
paintings 1,2,3 would be the same as selecting paintings 2,3,1.

To find the number of ways to select 3 of the 4 paintings, disregarding the order, we divide the
number of permutations by the number of ways to order 3 paintings.

There are 3!=3×2×1= 6 ways to order 3 paintings. There are 24 or 4 ways to select 3 of
the 4 paintings. This is because every time we are selecting 3 paintings, we
are not selecting 1 painting.
There are 4 ways we could choose not to select, so there are 4 ways to select 3 out of the 4.

2. UEW food restaurant offers five side dish options. Your meal comes with two side dishes.
a). How many ways can you select your 2 side dishes?
b). How many ways can you select 3 side dishes?

Solution
a). We want to choose 2 side dishes from 5 options.
n!
C (n, r ) =
5!
= = 10
(n − r )! r! (5 − 2)!2 !
b). We want to choose 33 side dishes from 55 options.

42
 n!
C (n, r ) =
5!
= = 10
(n − r )! r! (5 − 3)!3!

Using Combinations to Calculate the Number of Subsets of a Set

We have looked only at combination problems in which we chose exactly r objects. In some
cases, we want to consider choosing every possible number of objects.
We know that a set containing n distinct objects has 2n subsets
n
Therefore, the possible combinations are  nCr .
r =0

Examples
1. A pizza restaurant offers 5 toppings. Any number of toppings can be ordered. How many
different pizzas are possible?

Solution
Here, we need to consider pizzas with any number of toppings.
Note that there is C(5,0)=1 way to order a pizza with no toppings. There are C(5,1)=5 ways to
order a pizza with exactly one topping.

If we continue this process, we get: C(5,0)+C(5,1)+C(5,2)+C(5,3)+C(5,4)+C(5,5)=32

There are 32 possible pizzas. This result is equal to 25.
We are presented with a sequence of choices. For each of the n objects we have two choices:
include it in the subset or not. So for the whole subset we have made n choices, each with two
options. So there are a total of 2×2×2×…×2 possible resulting subsets.

Thus we start all the way from the empty subset, which we obtain when we say “no” each time,
to the original set itself, which we obtain when we say “yes” each time.

2. A restaurant offers butter, cheese, chives, and sour cream as toppings for a baked potato.
How many different ways are there to order a potato?

Solution
We are looking for the number of subsets of a set with 4 objects. Substitute n=4 into nr.
We have 2n = 24 =16
There are 16 possible ways to order a potato.

Finding the Number of Permutations of n Non-Distinct Objects

For example, suppose there is a sheet of 12 stickers. If all of the stickers were distinct, there
would be 12! ways to order the stickers. However, if 4 of the stickers are identical stars,
and 3 are identical moons, then all the objects are not distinct, and many of
the 12! Permutations may be duplicated.
n!
Therefore, the general formula for this situation is P(n, r ) =
r1 ! r2 !...rk !

43
In this example, we need to divide by the number of ways to order the 4 stars and the ways to
order the 3 moons to find the number of unique permutations of the stickers.
There are 4! ways to order the stars and 3! ways to order the moon.
n!
P(n, r ) =
12!
= = 3,326,400
r1 ! r2 !...rk ! 4!3!

Example
Find the number of rearrangements of the letters in the word DISTINCT.

Solution
There are 8 letters. Both I and T have repeated 2 times.

n!
Substitute n=8, r1 =2, and r2 =2 into the formula P(n, r ) =
8!
= = 10,080
r1 ! r2 !...rk ! 2!2!

Probability with Permutations and combinations

Dear Students,
Recall that the difference between combinations and permutations is ordering.
With permutations we care about the order of the elements, whereas with combinations we do
not order.
n!
Also, recall that the permutation of r objects from n is given by n Pr = and combination
(n − r )!
n!
is nCr = .
r !(n − r )!
n! n!
As applied to probability, n Pr = and nCr = serve as the total or sample
(n − r )! r !(n − r )!
space while the selections serve as the numerators.

Let us go straight to solving some problems and these concepts will be consolidated.
Thank you.

Activity 6.4
1. A four-digit PIN is selected. What is the probability that there are no repeated digits?

Solution
There are 10 possible values for each digit of the PIN (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
So there are 10×10×10×10=104 = 10000 total possible PINs.

To have no repeated digits, all four digits would have to be different, which is selecting without
replacement. We could either compute 10×9×8×7, or notice that this is permutation
10P4 = 5040.

The probability of no repeated digits is the number of 4 digit PINs with no repeated digits
divided by the total number of 4 digit PINs.

44
 10P 4 5040
This probability is = = 0.504
10 4 10000

2. In a certain lottery company, 48 balls numbered 1 through 48 are placed in a machine and
six of them are drawn at random. If the six numbers drawn match the numbers that a player
had chosen, the player wins 1,000,000 Ghana cedis. In this lottery, the order the numbers are
drawn in does not matter.

Compute the probability that you win the million-dollar prize if you purchase a single lottery
ticket.

Solution
In order to compute the probability, we need to count the total number of ways six numbers
can be drawn, and the number of ways the six numbers on the player’s ticket could match the
six numbers drawn from the machine.

Since there is no stipulation that the numbers be in any particular order, the number of possible
outcomes of the lottery drawing is 48C6 = 12,271,512.

Of these possible outcomes, only one would match all six numbers on the player’s ticket, so
6C 6 1
the probability of winning the grand prize is =
48C 6 12271512

3. In the lottery company from question 2, if five of the six numbers drawn match the numbers
that a player has chosen, the player wins a second prize of Ghc1,000. Compute the probability
that she wins the second prize if she purchases a single lottery ticket.

Solution
The number of possible outcomes of the lottery drawing is 48C6 = 12,271,512.
In order to win the second prize, five of the six numbers on the ticket must match five of the
six winning numbers

In other words, we must have chosen five of the six winning numbers and one of the 42 losing
numbers. The number of ways to choose 5 out of the 6 winning numbers is given by 6C5 = 6
and the number of ways to choose 1 out of the 42 losing numbers is given by 42C1 = 42.

Thus the number of favourable outcomes is then given by the 6C5 × 42C1 = 6 × 42 = 252.

So the probability of winning the second prize is

(6C 5)(42C1) = 252 = 0.0000205
(48C 6) 12271512

4. Compute the probability of randomly drawing five cards from a deck and getting exactly
one Ace.

Solution
In many card games (such as poker) the order in which the cards are drawn is not important
(since the player may rearrange the cards in his hand any way he chooses).

45
So, we will assume that this is the case. Thus we use combinations to compute the possible
number of 5-card hands, 52C5.

This number will go in the denominator of our probability formula, since it is the number of
possible outcomes.
For the numerator, we need the number of ways to draw one Ace and four other cards (none of
them Aces) from the deck.
Since there are four Aces and we want exactly one of them, there will be 4C1 ways to select
one Ace
Since there are 48 non-Aces and we want 4 of them, there will be 48C4 ways to select the four
non-Aces.
Now we use the Basic Counting Rule to calculate 4C1 × 48C4 ways to choose one ace and four
non-Aces.
Putting this all together, we have P(one ace) =
(4C1)(48C 4) = 778320 = 0.299
(52C 5) 2598960

5. Fifteen people sit around a circular table. What are odds against two particular people sitting
together?
Solution
15 persons can be seated in 14! Ways. No. of ways in which two particular people sit together
is 13! × 2!
The probability of two particular persons sitting together 13!2! / 14! = 1/7
Odds against the event = 6 : 1

6. Three bags contain 3 red, 7 black; 8 red, 2 black, and 4 red & 6 black balls respectively. 1
of the bags is selected at random and a ball is drawn from it. If the ball drawn is red, find the
probability that it is drawn from the third bag.
Solution
Let E1, E2, E3 and A are the events defined as follows.
E1 = First bag is chosen
E2 = Second bag is chosen
E3 = Third bag is chosen
A = Ball drawn is red
Since there are three bags and one of the bags is chosen at random, so P (E1) = P(E2) = P(E3)
=1/3
If E1 has already occurred, then first bag has been chosen which contains 3 red and 7 black
balls. The probability of drawing 1 red ball from it is 3/10. So, P (A/E1) = 3/10, similarly
P(A/E2) = 8/10, and P(A/E3) = 4/10.
We are required to find P(E3/A) i.e. given that the ball drawn is red, what is the probability that
1 4

3 10 4
the ball is drawn from the third bag by Baye’s rule = .
1 3 1 8 1 4 15
 +  + 
3 10 3 10 3 10
7. What is the probability of getting a sum of 22 or more when four dice are thrown?
Solution
Total number of ways = 64 = 1296.
4! 4!
Number of ways of getting a sum 22 is 6,6,6,4 = 4! = = 4 and 6,6,5,5 = 4! = = 6
3! 2!

46
 4!
Number of ways of getting a sum 23 is 6,6,6,5 = 4! = =4
3!
6!
Number of ways of getting a sum 24 is 6,6,6,6 = =1
6!
Number of cases = 4 + 6 + 4 + 1 = 15 ways.
P (22 or more) =
15 5
=
1296 432

8. From a pack of cards, three cards are drawn at random. Find the probability that each card
is from different suit.

Solution
Total number of cases = 52C3
One card each should be selected from a different suit. The three suits can be chosen in 4C3 was

The cards can be selected in a total of (4C3) x (13C1) x (13C1) x (13C1)

Probability = 4C3 x (13C1)3 / 52C3 = 4×(13)3 / 52C3

SUMMARY
Dear Student-Teachers,
In this section, we learned that permutation is used to select objects with order and combination
is used to select objects without order. We have also learned that the objects can be distinct or
non-distinct.

We have noticed how Permutation and Combination is a very important topic in this unit. Through
permutations and combinations, we have solved diverse forms of problems in probability.

SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

1. (a) The probability that a malaria patient (M) survives when administered with a newly
discovered drug is 0.27 and the probability that a typhoid patient (T) survives when injected
with another newly discovered drug is 0.85. What is the probability that
i. either of the two patients survives?
ii. of two patients survive?
iii. at least one of the two patients survives?

(b) Give your answers correct to 2 significant figures.

2. (a) In a class of 40 students, 18 passed Mathematics, 19 passed Accounts, 16 passed

Economics, 5 Mathematics and Accounts only, 6 Mathematics only, 9 Accounts only, 2
Accounts and Economics only. If each student offered at least one of the subjects,
i. How many students failed in all the subjects?
ii. Find the percentage number who failed in at least one of Economics and Mathematics;

(b) Calculate the probability that a student selected at random failed in Accounts.

47
3. In a class of 30 students, 19 are studying French, 12 are studying Spanish and 7 are studying
both French and Spanish. What is the probability that a student is not taking any foreign
language?

4. 150 college freshmen were interviewed.

85 were registered for a Math class,
70 were registered for an English class,
50 were registered for both Math and English.
a) What is the probability that a student signed up only for a Math Class?
b) What is the probability that a student signed up only for an English Class?
c) What is the probability that a student signed up for Math or English?
d) What is the probability that a student signed up neither for Math nor English?

48
UNIT 4 TEACHING INDICES, LOGARITHMS AND PERCENTAGES

UNIT INTRODUCTION
Indices provide a compact algebraic notation for repeated multiplication. Once index notation
is introduced the index laws arise naturally when simplifying numerical and algebraic
expressions. As often happens in mathematics, it is natural to ask questions such as:
• Can we give meaning to the zero index?
• Can we give meaning to a negative index?
• Can we give meaning to a rational or fractional index?
Again, in many applications of mathematics, we can express numbers as powers of some given
base. We can reverse this question and ask, for example, ‘What power of 2 gives 16? Our
attention is then turned to the index itself. This leads to the notion of a logarithm, which is
simply another name for an index. Logarithms are used in many places decibels that are used
to measure sound pressure, are defined using logarithms the Richter scale, that is used to
measure earthquake intensity, is defined using logarithms and the pH value in chemistry, that
is used to define the level of acidity of a substance.

In addition, the word ‘percent’ has been derived from the Latin word ‘percentum’ meaning per
hundred or out of hundred. Percent is a fraction or a decimal and its applications are prominent
in solving problems of commission, depreciation, discount, ratios, rates, proportions and
depreciation.
In this unit, we shall study the following sections:
1. Unit 4 Section 1 Concept of percentages and discounts
2. Unit 4 Section 2 Commissions and Depreciation
3. Unit 4 Section 3 Ratio, Rates and Proportions
4. Unit 4 Section 4 Teaching powers of numbers and indices
5. Unit 4 Section 5 Teaching prime power factorization
6. Unit 4 Section 6 Logarithms and its applications

49
UNIT 4 SECTION 1 CONCEPT OF PERCENTAGES AND DISCOUNTS
INTRODUCTION
Dear Student Teachers,
Another kind of fraction is the percentage. The Latin word per centum means per hundred, and
its symbol is represented by % , in which the implied denominator is always 100. Thus, 56%
means 56 / 100 . Percentages greater than 100 or less than zero are treated in the same way.
For example, 324% means 324 / 100 , and − 72% means − 72 / 100 . Monetary values are
commonly expressed as decimal fractions with the denominator 100 with two decimals. A
sales discount is a reduced price offered by a business on a product or service. A sales discount,
also commonly known as just a 'discount' provides customers of a business with a reduced rate
on one or more of the products or services being offered.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate deep • Select and use the most appropriate mathematical
understanding of key method(s) or heuristics in carrying out
mathematical concepts in tasks/exercises/problems percentages within the
percentages and discounts basic education mathematics foundation list.
in the basic school • Make connections between discounts and
mathematics curriculum applying them to solve real-life problems.
(professional values, • Identify and resolve percentages related learning
knowledge & practice) difficulties within Counting Principles’ content
domains such as inability to visualise
(NTS, 2b)
geometrical shapes.
• Solve discounts problems using technology
related strategies in a variety of ways.

50
The Concept of Percentages
Percentages are special ratios that compare a number of parts with 100 parts (1 whole).

The above is a rectangular grid of 100 squares. There are 25 squares that have been shaded. In
25 25
proper fractions, the shaded parts can be represented as . In the lowest term, the is the
100 100
1
same as . However, in percentages, the shaded parts can be written as 25% In decimal
4
fractions, .75 can be represented as 75% .

Types of Percentage Problems

Problems involving percentages are often classified into three different types, namely:
1. 75% of 300 is -------
2. 75% of ---- is 225
3. --- of 300 is 225
75
In scenario 1, 75% means “75 out of 100”. So 75% of 300 is  300 = 225
100
225
In scenario 2, 75% of a number is 225. So 1% of the number must be == 3 . So 100%
75
would be 3  100 = 300
225
In scenario 3, 225 out of 300 can be represented as . This is equivalent to
300
225 100 225 22500%
 =  100% = = 75% .
300 100 300 300
In equivalent ratios, the three scenarios could have been represented as follows:
75 x
1. =
100 300
75 225
2. =
100 x
x 225
3. =
100 300
Activity 4.1
1. A team lost 25 % of the matches it played. If it won 15 matches, find the number of matches
it played.
Solution:
Percentage of matches lost = 25 %
Therefore Percentage of matches won (100 - 25) % = 75 %
Let the number of matches played be m.

51
Then 75 % of m = 15
75/100 × m = 15
m = (15 × 100)/75 %
m = (1500)/75 %
m = 20 %
Therefore, the total number of matches played is 20.

2. In a plot of 6000 sq. m., only 4500 sq. m. is allowed for construction. What percent of the
plot is to be left without construction?
Solution:
Percentage of plot allowed for construction = (4500/6000 × 100) % = 75 %.
Thus, the percentage of plot to be left without construction = 100 % - 75 % = 25 %.
3. A number is reduced by 100 %. Its present value is 270. What was its original value?
Solution:
Original value is percentage = 100 %.
Reduce amount in percentage = 10 %
Therefore, Percent value in percentage = 100 % - 10 % = 90 %.
According to the problem,
90 % of original value = 270.
Therefore, 100 % of original value = 270/90 × 100 = 300.
Thus, the original value was 300.

4. A girl is scored 60 out of 75 in English, 60 out of 90 in mathematics and 80 out of 100 in

Science. Find girls score as percentage:
(i) in Mathematics
(ii) in all the three subjects (on the whole).
Solution:
(i) Percentage scored in Mathematics = 60/90 × 100 %n = 6000/90 % = 200/3 % = 662/3 %

(ii) Total maximum of all the three subjects = 75 + 90 + 100 = 265 and
Total score in the three subjects = 60 + 60 + 80 = 200
Therefore, percentage on the whole = (200/265 × 100) %
= (20000/265) %
= 4000/65 %
= 7525/53 %
5. If 16% of 40% of a number is 8, then find the number.
Solution:
Let x be the required number.
Therefore, as per the given question,
(16/100) × (40/100) × x = 8
So, x = (8 × 100 × 100) / (16 × 40)
= 125

6. What percentage of 2/7 is 1/35 ?

Solution:
Let x% of 2/7 is 1/35.
∴ [(2/7) / 100] × x = 1/35
⇒ x = (1/35) × (7/2) × 100 = 10%

7. Which number is 40% less than 90?

52
Solution:
Required number = 60% of 90
= (90 x 60)/100 = 54
Therefore, the number 54 is 40% less than 90.

8. The sum of (16% of 24.2) and (10% of 2.42) is equal to what value?
Solution:
As per the given question,
Sum = (16% of 24.2) + (10% of 2.42)
= (24.2 × 16)/100 + (2.42 × 10)/100
= 3.872 + 0.242 = 4.114

Discounts
Sometimes, shops offer opportunities to customers to try to encourage them to buy goods in
larger quantities. The discounts are usually percentage reductions of goods or services.
In discount, we will learn how to solve problems related to marked price, list price and discount.
Marked Price
In big shops and departmental stores like Melcom and Shoprite, every item is tagged with a
card and its price is written on it. This is called the marked price of that article, abbreviated
as MP. For books, the printed price is the marked price.
List Price:
Items which are manufactured in a factory are marked with a price according to the list supplied
by the factory, at which the retailer is supposed to sell them. This price is known as the list
price of the article.
Discount:
In order to increase the sale or clear the old stock, sometimes the shopkeepers offer a certain
percentage of rebate on the marked price. This rebate is known as discount.

Notes: The discount is always reckoned on the marked price.

Selling price = (marked price) - (discount)
Where:
'selling price' is the amount you actually pay for the thing when you purchase.
'marked price' is the general price of the thing without any discount.
'discount' is a percentage of the marked price.

Activity 4.2
1. The marked price of a ceiling fan is GHS 1250 and the shopkeeper allows a discount of 6%
on it. Find the selling price of the fan.

Solution:
Marked price = GHS 1250 and discount = 6%.
Discount = 6% of Marked Price = (6% of GHS 1250) = GHS {1250 × (6/100)} = GHS 75
Selling price = (Marked Price) - (discount) = GHS (1250 - 75) = GHS 1175.
Hence, the selling price of the fan is GHS 1175.

2. A trader marks his goods at 40% above the cost price and allows a discount of 25%. What
is his gain percent?
Solution:
Let the cost price be ¢ 100.
Then, marked price = ¢ 140.

53
Discount = 25% of Marked Price = (25% of ¢140) = ¢{140 × (25/100) = ¢35.
Selling price = (marked price) - (discount) = ¢(140 - 35) = ¢105.
Gain% = (105 - 100) % = 5%.
Hence, the trader gains 5%.

3. A dealer purchased a washing machine for $ 7660. He allows a discount of 12% on its
marked price and still gains 10%. Find the marked price of the machine.
Solution:
Cost price of the machine = ¢ 7660, Gain% = 10%.
Therefore, selling price = [{(100 + gain%)/100} × CP] = ¢[{(100 + 10)/100} × 7660] = ¢
[(110/100) × 7660 = ¢ 8426.
Let the marked price be ¢x.
Then, the discount = 12% of ¢x = ¢ {x × (12/100)} = ¢ 3x/25
Therefore, SP = (Marked Price) - (discount) = ¢ (x - 3x/25) = ¢ 22x/25.
But, the SP = ¢ 8426.
Therefore, 22x/25 = 8426 ⇒ x = (8426 × 25/22)
⇒ x = 9575.
Hence, the marked price of the washing machine is ¢ 9575.

4. How much per cent above the cost price should a shopkeeper mark his goods so that after
allowing a discount of 25% on the marked price, he gains 20%?
Solution:
Let the cost price be ¢100.
Gain required = 20%.
Therefore, selling price = ¢120.
Let the marked price be ¢x.
Then, discount = 25% of ¢x = ¢(x × 25/100) = ¢x/4
Therefore, selling price = (Marked Price) - (discount) = ¢{x - (x/4) = ¢3x/4
Therefore, 3x/4 = 120 ⇔ x = {120 × (4/3)} = 160
Therefore, marked price = ¢160.
Hence, the marked price is 60% above cost price.

5. Find the single discount equivalent to two successive discounts of 20% and 10%.
Solution:
Let the marked price of an article be ¢100.
Then, first discount on it = ¢20.
Price after first discount = ¢(100 - 20) = ¢80.
Second discount on it = 10% of ¢80 = ¢{80 × (10/100)} = ¢8.
Price after second discount = ¢(80 - 8) = ¢72.
Net selling price = ¢72.
Single discount equivalent to given successive discounts = (100 - 72)% = 28%.

SUMMARY
In this section, we have learned that a percentage compares objects to 100 parts.
We have also learned that in order to increase the sale or clear the old stock, sometimes the
shopkeepers offer a certain percentage of rebate on the marked price and this is called a
discount. We hope you can read more on these two concepts. Congratulations!

54
UNIT 4 SECTION 2 COMMISSIONS AND DEPRECIATION
INTRODUCTION
Commissions are commonly used in sales. A commission is a percent of a sale that
a salesperson receives in addition to their pay. Companies use commission as a strategy to
encourage employees to sell more. The more that an employee sells, the more
money they employee make. Commissions are common in fields like real estate, car sales,
furniture sales, insurance, and many more. On the other hand, depreciation means the decrease
in the value of physical properties or assets with the passage of time and use. It is the non-cash
method of representing the reduction in value of a tangible asset. Specifically, it is an
accounting concept that sets an annual deduction considering the factor of time and use on an
asset's value. An asset is depreciable if it has a determinable useful life of more than one year
in business or something to produce an income.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate awareness of • Reflect and show how student-teachers’
socio-cultural issues in mathematics history influences their views
teaching and learning of commission and its learning.
commission and • Identify appropriate TLMs for teaching
depreciation topics in depreciation.
(knowledge) (NTS, • Identify and use manipulatives in
2f). commission
• Make connections between depreciations
and applying them to solve real-life
problems.

The Concepts of Commissions

A commission is a percentage of total sales as determined by the rate of commission. Hence,
commission is equal to rate of commission× total sales
To find the commission on a sale, multiply the rate of commission by the total sales. Just as we
did for computing sales tax, remember to first convert the rate of commission from a percent
to a decimal.
We use the "Part, Percent, Whole" formula to calculate commissions.

Activity 2.1
1. Paul is a salesman who receives a 3% commission on the final sale of a house. If he sells the
house for ¢370,000, what will his commission be?
Solution:
To solve this problem, you will again use the formula part = percent/whole. Since the amount
of the commission is calculated as a fraction of the selling price of the house, the commission
will be the part and the price of the house will be the whole.
Part: x
Percent: 3% = 0.03
Whole: 370,000
Part = percent× whole x=0.03×370,000x = 11,100
Therefore, Paul will make an ¢11,100 commission on the house.

55
2. A general contractor is hired to build a house. The house will cost ¢250,000 to build, and the
general contractor also includes a 24% fee for the cost to the overall price. How much will the
person who hired the contractor have to pay?

Solution:
Since you are adding a percentage of the whole to the whole, you can use one of the methods
discussed earlier in Activity 1.
We can either find the part and add the fee to the whole, or you can find 100% + 24% = 124%
of the cost of building the house.
To find the fee and then add it to the cost using part = percent × whole
Part: x
Percent: 24% = 0.24
Whole: 250,000
Part = percent × whole x = 0.24×250,000x = 60,000
Therefore, the client will have to pay $250,000 + $60,000 = $310,000.

3. Aku receives a bill from her favorite restaurant for ¢30. How much should she pay if she
plans to pay only 20%?

Solution:
Since we want to find the value of the tip, we need to find 20% of ¢30. We can use the
equation part = percent × whole to do this.
Part: x
Percent: 20% = 0.2
Whole: 30
Part = percent × whole x = 0.2× 30x=6
Therefore, she will pay ¢6. This brings the total bill to ¢36.

4. An employee at a clothing store earned ¢450.25 in hourly pay for the month. He also sold
¢3,500.00 worth of merchandise and plans to earn a commission of 8\%8% on those sales.
What is the employee’s expected paycheck before tax deductions?

Solution:
First find the amount he earned in commission.
¢3,500.00×8% = ¢3,500.00×0.08 = ¢280.00
Now calculate the total amount: ¢450.25+¢280.00 = ¢730.25
The employee should expect ¢730.25 on his paycheck.

5. Stephanie earns ¢42,000.00 per year plus a commission of 15% on all the cars she sells. If
she wants a yearly salary of ¢67,200.00, how much money in car sales does she need to make?

Solution:
We know she wants to earn: ¢67,200.00−¢42,000.00 = ¢25,200.00
This is the amount she needs to earn in commission. That means ¢25,200.00=15%x, where
xx is the amount of money from car sales.
25,200
= x and so x = 168,000
0.15
This means to earn a salary of ¢67,200.00, Stephanie needs to sell ¢168,000.00 worth of cars.

56
The Concept of Depreciation by Straight Line Depreciation Method
Straight Line Depreciation Method is one of the most popular methods of depreciation where
the asset uniformly depreciates over its useful life, and the asset’s cost is evenly spread over its
useful and functional life. Thus, the depreciation expense in the income statement remains the
same for a particular asset over the period. As such, the income statement is expensed evenly,
and so is the asset’s value on the balance sheet. The asset’s carrying amount on the balance
sheet reduces by the same amount.
Straight-line depreciation method can be calculated using the following formula:
Depreciation Per Annum = (Cost of Asset – Salvage Cost) × Depreciation Rate or
Depreciation Per Annum = (Cost of Asset – Salvage Cost) / Useful Life
The straight-line method of calculating straight-line depreciation has the following steps:
• Determine the initial cost of the asset at the time of purchasing.
• Determine the salvage value of the asset, i.e., the value at which the asset can be sold
or disposed of after its useful life is over.
• Determine the useful or functional life of the asset
• Calculate the depreciation rate, i.e., 1/useful life
• Multiply the depreciation rate by the cost of the asset minus the salvage cost
The value we get after following the above straight-line method of depreciation steps is the
depreciation expense, which is deducted from the income statement every year until the asset’s
useful life.

Activity 2.2
1. A ¢15,000 office cubicle system depreciates over 10 years, so its straight-line depreciation
rate is 10%. For the first year of the system's life:
Solution:
(2 × .10) × 15,000 = ¢3,000
You can deduct ¢3,000 of the system's value in its first year. For year two, the value is now
¢12,000 so for year two:
(2 × .10) × 12,000 = ¢2,400
You then can deduct ¢2,400 from the first-year value of ¢12,000 to find the second-year value
of ¢9,600. You would continue the process for years three through 10.

2. A company has ¢15,000 worth of assets but this is set to devalue by 8% annually for two
years. By how much have the assets depreciated?
Solution:
Year Initial Interest ¢ End of year ¢
1 ¢15,000 8 15,000-1,200=13,000
 15,000 = 12,000
100
2 ¢13,000 8 13,000-1,104= 12,696
 13,000 = 1,104
100

Final answer = original amount – final value

Final answer = ¢15,000 – ¢12,696 = ¢2,304

3. Suppose a business has bought a machine for ¢10,000. They have estimated the machine’s
useful life to be eight years, with a salvage value of ¢2,000.
Now, as per the straight-line method of depreciation:
Cost of the asset = ¢10,000
Salvage Value = ¢2000

57
 Total Depreciation Cost = Cost of asset – Salvage Value = 10000 – 2000 = ¢8000
The useful life of the asset = 8 years
Thus, annual depreciation cost = (Cost of asset – Salvage Cost)/Useful Life = 8000/8 = ¢ 1000
Hence, the Company will depreciate the machine by ¢1000 annually for eight years.
We can also calculate the depreciation rate, given the annual depreciation amount and the total
depreciation amount, which is the annual depreciation amount/total depreciation amount.

• Hence, depreciation rate = (annual depreciation amount/total depreciation amount)×100 =

(1000/8000)×100 = 12.5%
• The depreciation account of the balance sheet will look like below over the eight years of the
machine’s life:

Year Book value (beginning) (¢) Depreciation (¢) Book value (end) (¢)
1 10,000 1,000 9,000
2 9,000 1,000 8,000
3 8,000 1,000 7,000
4 7,000 1,000 6,000
5 6,000 1,000 5,000
6 5,000 1,000 4,000
7 4,000 1,000 3,000
8 3,000 1,000 2,000

4. Suppose a manufacturing company purchases machinery for ¢100,000 and the useful life of
the machinery are 10 years and the residual value of the machinery is ¢20,000.
Solution:
Annual Depreciation expense = (100,000-20,000) / 10 = ¢8,000
Thus the company can take ¢8000 as the depreciation expense every year over the next ten
years as shown in the depreciation table below.

Year Original – residual value Depreciation expenses

1 80,000 8,000
2 80,000 8,000
3 80,000 8,000
4 80,000 8,000
5 80,000 8,000
6 80,000 8,000
7 80,000 8,000
8 80,000 8,000
9 80,000 8,000
10 80,000 8,000

NB: The other methods are unit of production, double-declining balance and sum of the year
digit, which are beyond the scope of this manual.

SUMMARY
Dear Student Teachers,
We have learned that a commission is a percentage of total sales as determined by the rate of
commission. To find the commission on a sale, multiply the rate of commission by the total
sales.

58
We have also learned that depreciation means the decrease in the value of physical properties
or assets with the passage of time and use. It is the non-cash method of representing the
reduction in value of a tangible asset. The straight-line depreciation method can be calculated
using the Depreciation Per Annum = (Cost of Asset – Salvage Cost) * Depreciation Rate or
Depreciation Per Annum = (Cost of Asset – Salvage Cost) / Useful Life.

59
UNIT 4 SECTION 3 RATIOS, RATES AND PROPORTIONS
INTRODUCTION
In Unit 2 of Number and Algebra 1, we learned that the basic comparisons are rates, ratios,
proportions and percentages. We learned that rates, ratios, proportions and percentages help
us to make such comparisons. Rates and ratios are expressed in the form a : b , where ‘a’ and
‘b’ are whole numbers and b  0 .

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate value as well • Both tutors and student-teachers do individual
as respect equity and reflection on their knowledge of ratios.
inclusivity as well as • Identify and reflect on core skills applied in rates
core skills in the ratio, in the mathematics classroom.
rate and proportion • Appreciate the contributions of, and supports,
classroom colleagues in proportion in the mathematics
(knowledge)(NTS, 2f) classroom.
• Cooperate with colleagues in carrying out
problems in ratios, rates and proportions..

60
Ratios, Rates and Proportions
Ratio
This is a relationship between two numbers, expressed as a quotient with the same unit in the
denominator and the numerator. There are three ways to write a ratio. The ratio
a
of a and b is: a to b or a : b or .
b
Example
You are at an amusement theme park with your 10 year old child. You bought a ticket for ½
day, but your child wants to stay another 4 hours after the ½ day is used. The admissions office
can accommodate your child's additional time but the rate is ¢15 an hour. How much will it
cost to purchase the additional 4 hours at this rate?
Solution:
¢15 / 1 Hour = ¢x / 4 Hours
x= 4 x 15 = $60
Therefore, it will cost you an additional ¢60 for 4 more hours of fun for your child.

Rate
This is a ratio of two quantities with different units. Examples are teachers to students, money
to time, distance to time, etc.
Example
You are following a recipe for a cake for your church group's get together. This recipe calls for
3 tsp of baking powder to every 6 cups of flour. How many tsp would you add to 24 cups of
flour?
Solution:
3 tsp : 6 cups OR 3 tsp / 6 cups OR 3 tsp is to 6 cups
3 tsp / 6 cups = x tsps / 24 cups
6x = 24 x 3 = 76
6x = 24 x 3 = 72 / 6 = 12 4/16 = 12 tsps
Therefore, you will need 12 tsps. of baking powder for 24 cups of flour which is enough to
make 4 cakes for the church group's get together.

Proportion
a c 
This is an equation with a ratio (or rate) on two sides  =  , in which the two ratios are
b d 
equal.
Proportion is an equation that defines that the two given ratios are equivalent to each other. In
other words, the proportion states the equality of the two fractions or the ratios. In proportion,
if two sets of given numbers are increasing or decreasing in the same ratio, then the ratios are
said to be directly proportional to each other.
For example, the time taken by train to cover 100km per hour is equal to the time taken by it
to cover the distance of 500km for 5 hours. Such as 100km/hr = 500km/5hrs.
Ratio and proportions are said to be faces of the same coin. When two ratios are equal in value,
then they are said to be in proportion. In simple words, it compares two ratios. Proportions are
denoted by the symbol ‘::’ or ‘=’.
The proportion can be classified into the following categories, such as:
• Direct Proportion
• Inverse Proportion
• Continued Proportion

61
Direct Proportion
The direct proportion describes the relationship between two quantities, in which the increases
in one quantity, there is an increase in the other quantity also. Similarly, if one quantity
decreases, the other quantity also decreases. Hence, if “a” and “b” are two quantities, then the
direction proportion is written as a ∝ b.

Inverse Proportion
The inverse proportion describes the relationship between two quantities in which an increase
in one quantity leads to a decrease in the other quantity. Similarly, if there is a decrease in one
quantity, there is an increase in the other quantity. Therefore, the inverse proportion of two
quantities, say “a” and “b” is represented by a ∝ (1/b).

Continued Proportion
Consider two ratios to be a: b and c: d.
Then in order to find the continued proportion for the two given ratio terms, we convert the
means to a single term/number. This would, in general, be the LCM of means.
For the given ratio, the LCM of b & c will be bc.
Thus, multiplying the first ratio by c and the second ratio by b, we have
• First ratio- ca:bc
• Second ratio- bc: bd
Thus, the continued proportion can be written in the form of ca: bc: bd

Activity 3.1
1. Are the ratios 4:5 and 8:10 said to be in Proportion?
Solution:
4:5= 4/5 = 0.8 and 8: 10= 8/10= 0.8
Since both the ratios are equal, they are said to be in proportion.

2. 10 and 7:10 in proportion?

Solution:
8:10= 8/10= 0.8 and 7:10= 7/10= 0.7
Since both the ratios are not equal, they are not in proportion.

3. Given ratio are-

a:b = 2:3
b:c = 5:2
c:d = 1:4
Find a: b: c.
Solution:
Multiplying the first ratio by 5, second by 3 and third by 6, we have
a:b = 10: 15
b:c = 15 : 6
c:d = 6 : 24
In the ratio’s above, all the mean terms are equal, thus
a:b:c:d = 10:15:6:24

4. Check whether the following statements are true or false.

a] 12 : 18 = 28 : 56
b] 25 people : 130 people = 15kg : 78kg

62
 Solution:
a] 12 : 18 = 28 : 56
The given statement is false.
12 : 18 = 12 / 18 = 2 / 3 = 2 : 3
28 : 56 = 28 / 56 = 1 / 2 = 1 : 2
They are unequal.
b] 25 persons : 130 persons = 15kg : 78kg
The given statement is true.
25 people : 130 people = 5: 26
15kg : 78kg = 5: 26
They are equal.

The table below summarizes the basic differences between the three comparisons.

Rate Ratio Proportion Percentage

It is used to compare It is used to compare two It is used to compare It is used to compare
two measures with measures with the same two measures of measures to hundred.
different dimensions dimensions equivalent rates or
equivalent ratios.
Examples
Example
Examples Examples
i. 35% profit for every
Distance per time
i. distance travelled i. Ama amount of money ₵100.
taken in Accra
compared to the time compared to Kofi’s
compared to distance
taken amount of money
per time taken in
Cape Coast ii. 25%loss in every
₵2500 sales
ii. Price of fuel per litre ii. Number of boys
of the fuel furniture compared to
number of girls’ furniture

Activity 3.2
1. Arrange the following ratios in descending order.
2 : 3, 3 : 4, 5 : 6, 1 : 5
Solution:
Given ratios are 2/3, 3/4, 5/6, 1/5
The L.C.M. of 3, 4, 6, 5 is 2 × 2 × 3 × 5 = 60
Now, 2/3 = (2 × 20)/(3 × 20) = 40/60
3/4 = (3 × 15)/(4 × 15) = 45/60
5/6 = (5 × 10)/(6 × 10) = 50/60
1/5 = (1 × 12)/(5 × 12) = 12/60
Clearly, 50/60 > 45/60 > 40/60 > 12/60
Therefore, 5/6 > 3/4 > 2/3 > 1/5
So, 5 : 6 > 3 : 4 > 2 : 3 > 1 : 5

63
2. Two numbers are in the ratio 3 : 4. If the sum of numbers is 63, find the numbers.
Solution:
Sum of the terms of the ratio = 3 + 4 = 7
Sum of numbers = 63
Therefore, first number = 3/7 × 63 = 27
Second number = 4/7 × 63 = 36
Therefore, the two numbers are 27 and 36.

3. If x : y = 1 : 2, find the value of (2x + 3y) : (x + 4y)

Solution:
x : y = 1 : 2 means x/y = ½
Now, (2x + 3y) : (x + 4y) = (2x + 3y)/(x + 4y) [Divide numerator and denominator by y.] =
[(2x + 3y)/y]/[(x + 4y)/2] = [2(x/y) + 3]/[(x/y) + 4], put x/y = ½
We get = [2 (1/2) + 3)/(1/2 + 4) = (1 + 3)/[(1 + 8)/2] = 4/(9/2) = 4/1 × 2/9 = 8/9
Therefore the value of (2x + 3y) : (x + 4y) = 8 : 9

4. A bag contains ¢510 in the form of 50 p, 25 p and 20 p coins in the ratio 2 : 3 : 4. Find the
number of coins of each type.
Solution:
Let the number of 50 p, 25 p and 20 p coins be 2x, 3x and 4x.
Then 2x × 50/100 + 3x × 25/100 + 4x × 20/100 = 510
x/1 + 3x/4 + 4x/5 = 510
(20x + 15x + 16x)/20 = 510
⇒ 51x/20 = 510
x = (510 × 20)/51
x = 200
2x = 2 × 200 = 400
3x = 3 × 200 = 600
4x = 4 × 200 = 800.
Therefore, number of 50 p coins, 25 p coins and 20 p coins are 400, 600, 800 respectively.

5. If 2A = 3B = 4C, find A : B : C
Solution:
Let 2A = 3B = 4C = x
So, A = x/2 B = x/3 C = x/4
The L.C.M of 2, 3 and 4 is 12
Therefore, A : B : C = x/2 × 12 : x/3 × 12 : x/4 = 12 = 6x : 4x : 3x = 6 : 4 : 3
Therefore, A : B : C = 6 : 4 : 3

6. What must be added to each term of the ratio 2 : 3, so that it may become equal to 4 : 5?
Solution:
Let the number to be added be x, then (2 + x) : (3 + x) = 4 : 5
⇒ (2 + x)/(5 + x) = 4/5
5(2 + x) = 4(3 + x)
10 + 5x = 12 + 4x
5x - 4x = 12 – 10
x=2

64
7. The length of the ribbon was originally 30 cm. It was reduced in the ratio 5 : 3. What is its
length now?
Solution:
Length of ribbon originally = 30 cm
Let the original length be 5x and reduced length be 3x.
But 5x = 30 cm
x = 30/5 cm = 6 cm
Therefore, reduced length = 3 cm = 3 × 6 cm = 18 cm

8. Mother divided the money among Ron, Sam and Maria in the ratio 2 : 3 : 5. If Maria got
¢150, find the total amount and the money received by Ron and Sam.
Solution:
Let the money received by Ron, Sam and Maria be 2x, 3x, 5x respectively.
Given that Maria has got ¢150.
Therefore, 5x = 150 or, x = 150/5 or, x = 30
So, Ron got = 2x = ¢2 × 30 = ¢60
Sam got = 3x = 3 × 60 = ¢90
Therefore, the total amount ¢(60 + 90 + 150) = ¢300

9. Divide ¢370 into three parts such that second part is 1/4 of the third part and the ratio between
the first and the third part is 3 : 5. Find each part.
Solution:
Let the first and the third parts be 3x and 5x.
Second part = 1/4 of third part = (1/4) × 5x = 5x/4
Therefore, 3x + (5x/4) + 5x = 370
(12x + 5x + 20x)/4 = 370
37x/4 = 370
x = (370 × 4)/37
x = 10 × 4
x = 40
Therefore, first part = 3x = 3 × 40 = $120
Second part = 5x/4 = 5 × 40/4 = ¢50
Third part = 5x = 5 × 40 = ¢200

10. The first, second and third terms of the proportion are 42, 36, 35. Find the fourth term.
Solution:
Let the fourth term be x.
Thus 42, 36, 35, x are in proportion.
Product of extreme terms = 42 ×x
Product of mean terms = 36 X 35
Since, the numbers make up a proportion
Therefore, 42 × x = 36 × 35 or, x = (36 × 35)/42 or, x = 30
Therefore, the fourth term of the proportion is 30.

11. Set up all possible proportions from the numbers 8, 12, 20, 30.
Solution:
We note that 8 × 30 = 240 and 12 × 20 = 240
Thus, 8 × 30 = 12 × 20 ………..(I)
Hence, 8 : 12 = 20 : 30 ……….. (i)
We also note that, 8 × 30 = 20 × 12

65
Hence, 8 : 20 = 12 : 30 ……….. (ii)
(I) can also be written as 12 × 20 = 8 × 30
Hence, 12 : 8 = 30 : 20 ……….. (iii)
Last (I) can also be written as
12 : 30 = 8 : 20 ……….. (iv)
Thus, the required proportions are 8 : 12 = 20 : 30
8 : 20 = 12 : 30 12 : 8 = 30 : 20 12 : 30 = 8 : 20

12. The ratio of number of boys and girls is 4 : 3. If there are 18 girls in a class, find the number
of boys in the class and the total number of students in the class.
Solution:
Number of girls in the class = 18
Ratio of boys and girls = 4 : 3
According to the question,
Boys/Girls = 4/5
Boys/18 = 4/5
Boys = (4 × 18)/3 = 24
Therefore, total number of students = 24 + 18 = 42.

13. Find the third proportional of 16 and 20.

Solution:
Let the third proportional of 16 and 20 be x.
Then 16, 20, x are in proportion.
This means 16 : 20 = 20 : x
So, 16 × x = 20 × 20
x = (20 × 20)/16 = 25
Therefore, the third proportional of 16 and 20 is 25.

SUMMARY
Dear Student Teachers,
We have learned that:
• Ratio is a relationship between two numbers, expressed as a quotient with the same
unit in the denominator and the numerator.
• Rate is a ratio of two quantities with different units such as teachers to students, money
to time, distance to time, etc.
• Proportion is an equation that defines that the two given ratios are equivalent to each
other.
We hope you can explore more examples on these three concepts. Congratulations!

66
UNIT 4 SECTION 4 TEACHING POWERS OF NUMBERS AND INDICES
INTRODUCTION
Knowledge of powers, or indices as they are often called, is essential for an understanding of
most algebraic processes. In this section of text you will learn about powers and rules for
manipulating them through a number of worked examples. In order to master the techniques
explained here it is vital that you undertake plenty of practice exercises so that they become
second nature. After reading this text, and/or viewing the video tutorial on this topic, you
should be able to simplify expressions involving indices, use the rules of indices to simplify
expressions involving indices and use negative and fractional indices.
LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS
Demonstrate deep • Select and use the most appropriate mathematical
understanding of key method(s) or heuristics in carrying out
mathematical concepts in tasks/exercises/problems powers of numbers
Powers of Numbers and within the basic education mathematics.
Indices in the basic school • Make connections between powers of numbers
mathematics curriculum and indices, and applying them to solve real-life
(professional values, problems.
knowledge & practice) • Identify and resolve indices related learning
difficulties.
(NTS, 2b)
• Solve indices problems using technology related
strategies in a variety of ways.

67
Powers of Numbers and Indices
An index is a small number that tells us how many times a term has been multiplied by itself.
The plural of index is indices.

Basically, they are a shorthand way of writing multiplications of the same number. So, suppose
we have 4 × 4 × 4. We write this as ‘4 to the power 3 or 43. So 4 × 4 × 4 = 43. The number 3 is
called the power or index.

This can be done with letters as well as numbers. So, we might have: a × a × a × a × a
Since there are five a’s multiplied together we write this as ‘a to the power 5’. a5
So a × a × a × a × a = a5.
What if we had 2×2 raised to the power 4? This means four factors of 2x 2 multiplied together,
that is, 2x 2 × 2x 2 × 2x 2 × 2x 2. This can be written 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × x × x × x × x, which can
be written as 16x8 .

Rules of Indices
The multiplication rule
Suppose we have a3 and we want to multiply it by a2 . That is a3 × a2 = a × a × a × a × a
Altogether there are five a’s multiplied together. Clearly, this is the same as a5 . This suggests
that if we are multiplying expressions such as these then we add the indices together. So, if we
have am × an we add the indices to get am × an = am+n.
Example
Simplify 4a3×7a2
Solution:
This can be written as 4a3×7a2=4×a×a×a×7×a×a =
Add together the indices 3 and the 2: 3+2=5
Multiply 4 and 7 together: 4×7=28 4=28
So, 4a3×7a2=28a5

The power of index rule

Suppose we had a4 and we want to raise it all to the power 3. That is (a4)3. This means a4 × a4
× a4. Now our first rule tells us that we should add the indices together. So that is a12. But note
also that 12 is 4 × 3. This suggests that if we have am all raised to the power n, the result is
obtained by multiplying the two powers to get am×n, or simply amn.
Example
Simplify and leave your answer in index form of (a3)4
Solution:
Multiply the powers 3 and the 4: 3×4=12
So, (a3)4=a12

The division rule

Consider dividing a7 by a3 . a7 ÷ a3 = (a × a × a × a × a × a × a)/( a × a × a)
We can now begin dividing out the common factors of a.
Three of the a’s at the top and the three a’s at the bottom can be divided out, so we are now left
with a4. The same answer is obtained by subtracting the indices, that is, 7 − 3 = 4. This suggests
our third rule, that am ÷ an = am-n.

Example
Simplify 21a9÷7a2

68
Solution:
Subtract the indices 9 and 2: 9–2=7
Divide the coefficients 21 and 7: 21÷7=3
So, 21a9÷7a2=3a7

The same power rule

Let’s have a look at a3 divided by a3. We know the answer to this. We are dividing a quantity
by itself, so the answer has got to be 1. a3 ÷ a3 = 1.
Let’s do this using our rules; rule 3 will help us do this. Rule 3 tells us that to divide the two
quantities we subtract the indices: a3 ÷ a3 = a3−3 = a0. We appear to have obtained a different
answer. We have done the same calculation in two different ways. We have done it correctly
in two different ways. So the answers we get, even if they look different, must be the same. So,
what we have is a0 = 1. This means that any number raised to the power zero is 1.

The negative power rule

Let’s have a look now at doing a division again. Consider a3 divided by a7 . a3 ÷ a7 = (a × a ×
a)/( a × a × a × a × a × a × a). Again, we can now begin dividing out the common factors of a.
The 3 a’s at the top and three of the a’s at the bottom can be divided out, so we are now left
with a3 ÷ a7 = 1/( a × a × a × a) = 1/a4.
Now let’s use our third rule and do the same calculation by subtracting the indices. a3 ÷ a7 =
a3−7 = a−4. We have done it correctly in two different ways. So the answers we get, even if they
look different, must be the same. So 1/a4 = a−4. So a negative sign in the index can be thought
of as meaning ‘1 over’.

Examples
• 5-1 = ⅕,
• 8-3=1/83

The square root rule

So far we have dealt with integer powers both positive and negative. What would we do if we
had a fraction for a power, like a 12 . To see how to deal with fractional powers consider the
following:
Suppose we have two identical numbers multiplying together to give another number, as in, for
example 7 × 7 = 49 Then we know that 7 is a square root of 49. That is, if 72 = 49 then 7 = √49.
Now suppose we found that ap × ap = a. That is, when we multiplied ap by itself we got the
result ‘a’. This means that ap must be a square root of ‘a’. However, look at this another way:
noting that a = a1, and also that, from the first rule, ap × ap = a2p we see that if ap × ap = a then
a2p = a1 from which 2p = 1 and so p = ½. This shows that a 1/2 must be the square root of a.
That is a1/2 = √a.
Similarly a1/3 = √3, this is the cube root of a and a1/4 = √4. this is the fourth root of a.

Examples
1. What do we mean by 161/4 ?
Solution:
For this we need to know what number when multiplied together four times gives 16. The
answer is 2. So 161/4 = 2.
2. What do we mean by 811/2 ?
Solution
:
For this we need to know what number when multiplied by itself gives 81. The answer is 9. So
811/2 = √81 = 9.

69
3. What about 2431/5 ?
Solution:
What number when multiplied together five times gives us 243 ?
If we are familiar with times-tables we might spot that 243 = 3 × 81, and also that 81 = 9 × 9.
So 2431/5 = (3 × 81)1/5 = (3 × 9 × 9)1/5 = (3 × 3 × 3 × 3 × 3)1/5
So 3 multiplied by itself five times equals 243. Hence 2431/5 = 3
Notice in doing this how important it is to be able to recognise what factors numbers are made
up of. For example, it is important to be able to recognise that: 16 = 24 , 16 = 42 , 81 = 92 , 81
= 34 and so on. You will find calculations much easier if you can recognise in numbers their
composition as powers of simple numbers such as 2, 3, 4 and 5. Once you have got these firmly
fixed in your mind, this sort of calculation becomes straightforward.

Common Misconceptions in Indices

1. Base Numbers: A common error is to incorrectly simplify expressions using the index rules
where they do not share a base number.
2. Index power of 1: If no index power is shown you need to remember it is being multiplied
by itself ‘one time’ e.g 2 = 21. This helps with index notation questions.
3. Operations: A common error is to attempt to simplify an expression using the incorrect
operation between the base numbers.
4. Coefficients and brackets: A common error is to not include the coefficients when
expanding brackets. E.g. : (2x)3 = 2x3
5. Fractions and decimals
We can write fractions and decimals using index notation. E.g.
• 0.53=0.5×0.5×0.5=0.125 =1/8
• (1/2)3=1/2×1/2×1/2=1/8

Indicial Equations of Linear Forms

There are three types of indicial equations. They are as follows:
1. Equations with the same bases on both sides (Example: 4x = 42)
2. Equations with different bases that can be made the same. (Example: 4x = 16 which can
be written as 4x = 42)
3. Equations with different bases that cannot be made the same (Example: 4x = 15)
Under types 1 and 2 indicial equations, if the base numbers of any equation are equal, then the
power are equal & vice versa. Under type 3, we transform both sides to logarothmis, which
will be treated in unit 4 section 6.

Examples
Solve the following exponential equations
a) (1/2)x = 8
b) (0.25) x+1 = 16
c) 3x = 1/81
d) 10 x = 1/0.001
e) 4/2x = 64 x
Solution
a) (1/2) X = 8 b) (0.25) x+1 = 16
(2 -1) x = 23 (25/100) x+1 = 42 2 –x =
3 x+1 2
2 (1/4) = 4
-1 x + 1
-x = 3 (4 ) = 42
–x–1
x=–3 4 = 42
–x–1=2

70
 –x=2+1
–x=3
X=–3
c) 3x = 1/81 d) 10 x = 1/0.001
3x = 1/34 10 x = 1000
3x = 3 -4 10 x = 10 3
x = -4 10 x = 10 3
x=3

e) 4/2x = 64 x
4÷2x = 64 x
22 ÷2x = 64 x
2 2-x = (2 6) x
2 2-x = 2 6x
2- x = 6x
2=6x+x
2 = 7x
Divide both sides by 7
2/7 = 7x/7
x = 2/7

Indicial Equations of Quadratic Forms

Some exponential equation can be reduced to quadratic form as can be seen below.
Example:
Solve the following equations.
a) 22x – 6 (2x) + 8 = 0
b) 52x + 4 x 5 x+1 – 125 = 0
c) 32x – 9 = 0
Solutions
a) 22x – 6 (2x) + 8 = 0 When y = 4 then, and When y = 2
then,
(2x)2 – 6 (2x) + 8 = 0 2x=4 2x=2
Let 2x = y 2x=22 2x = 2 1
Then y – 6y + 8 = 0
2
x=2 x=1
Then factorize x = 1 and 2
y 2 – 4y – 2y + 8 = 0
y (y – 4) -2 (y -4) = 0
(y -2) (y – 4) = 0
y – 2 = 0 or y – 4 = 0
y = 2 or y= 4
y = 2, 4

b) 52x + 4 x 5x+1 – 125 = 0

(5 x) 2 + 4 x (5 x x 51) – 125 = 0
Let 5x = p
P 2 + 4 x (p x 5) – 125 = 0
P2 + 4 (5p) – 125 = 0
P2 + 20p – 125 = 0
Then, Factorize p2 + 25p – 5p – 125 = 0
p (p + 25) – 5 (p + 25) = 0

71
 (p – 5) (p + 25) = 0
p – 5 = 0 p + 25 = 0
p = 5 or p = – 25
Since 5x = p, p=5
5x = 5 1
x=1
5x = -25
c) 3 2x – 9 = 0
(3 x) 2 – 9 = 0
Let 3x = a
a2 – 9 = 0
a2 = 9
a = ±√9
a=±3
a = 3 or – 3
Since 3x = a, when a = 3
3 x = 31
x=1
Since 3x = a, when a = -3
3x= – 3

Activity 4.1
1. Multiply x4y3z2 and xy5z-1
Solution:
x4y3z2 and xy5z-1 = x4.x .y3.y5.z2.z-1 = x4+1.y3+5.z2-1 = x5.y8.z

2. Solve a3b2/a2b4
Solution:
a3b2/a2b4 = a3-2b2-4 = a1b-2 = a b-2 = a/b2

3. Find the value of 272/3.

Solution:
272/3 = 3√272 = 32 = 9

4. Solve: 2-2 + 3-2

Solution:
Use the negative exponent rule a-n = 1/an
2-2 + 3-2 = 1/22 + 1/32 = 1/4 + 1/9
Take the Least Common Multiple (LCM): (9 + 4)/36 = 13/36
Therefore, 2-2 + 3-2 = 13/36

5. Solve: 1/4-2 + 1/2-3

Solution:
Use the second rule with a negative exponent in the denominator: 1/a-n =an
1/4-2 + 1/2-3 = 42 + 23 =16 + 8 = 24
Therefore, 1/4-2 + 1/2-3 = 24

6. Find the solution of the given expression (32 + 42)-2 .

Solution:
The given expression is, (32 + 42)-2 = (9 + 16)-2

72
= (25)-2
= 1/252 (by negative exponents rule)
= 1/625.
Therefore, (32 + 42)-2 = 1/625

7. Find the value of x in 27/3-x = 36

Solution:
Here we have negative exponents with variables.
27/3-x = 36
33/3-x = 36
33 × 3x= 36
3(3 + x) = 36
If bases are the same then exponents must be equal, so, 3 + x = 6. Solving this, x = 3.

8. Simplify the following using negative exponent rules: (2/3)-2 + (5)-1

Solution:
By using negative exponent rules, we can write (2/3)-2 as (3/2)2 and (5)-1 as 1/5. So, we can
simplify the given expression as,
= (3/2)2 + 1/5
= 9/4 + 1/5
After taking the LCM, we get, (45 + 4)/20
49/20
Therefore, (2/3)-2 + (5)-1 is simplified to 49/20.

Activity 4.2
1. Solve 5x = 53
Solution:
Since the bases (‘5’ in each case) are the same, then the only way the two expressions could be
equal is for the powers also to be the same. That is: x = 3.
This solution demonstrates the logical basis for how this entire class of equation is solved: If
the bases are the same, then the powers must also be equal; this is the only way for the two
sides of the equation to be equal to each other. Since the powers must be the same, then we can
set the two powers equal to each other, and solve the resulting equation.

2. Solve 101−x=104
Solution:
Since the bases are the same, then I can equate the powers and solve:
1−x=4
1−4=x
−3 = x
Then my solution is:
x = −3
Not all exponential equations are given in terms of the same base on either side of the "equals"
sign. Sometimes we first need to convert one side or the other (or both) to some other base
before we can set the powers equal to each other. For example:

3. Solve 3x = 9

73
Solution:
Since 9 = 32, this is really asking me to solve:
3x = 32
By converting the 9 to a 32, I've converted the right-hand side of the equation to having the
same base as the left-hand side. Since the bases are now the same, I can set the two powers
equal to each other: x = 2

4. Solve 32x−1=27
Solution:
In this case, an exponential on one side of the ‘equals’ and a number on the other.
We can solve the equation if we can express the ‘27’ as a power of 3. Since 27 = 33, then we
can convert and proceed with the solution:
32x−1 = 27
32x−1 = 33
2x − 1 = 3
2x = 4
x=2

5. Solve 3x2−3x=81
Solution:
This exercise works just like the previous one:
3x2−3x = 81
3x2−3x = 34
x2−3x = 4
x2−3x−4=0
(x−4)(x+1)=0
x=−1,4
So my answer is x = −1, 4

6. Solve 42x2+2x=8
Solution:
This equation is similar to the previous two but is not quite the same, because 8 is not a power
of 4. However, both 8 and 4 are powers of 2, so I can convert. The right-hand side is easy:
8 = 23
The left-hand side is a bit messier:
4=22
42x2+2x=(22)2x2+2x
=22(2x2+2x)
= 24x2+4x
Now that I've re-stated both sides as powers on 2, I can solve:
42x2+2x = 8
4x2+4x=23
4x2+4x=3
4x2+4x−3=0
(2x−1)(2x+3)=0

7. Solve 8x−2 = 8

74
Solution:
In order to be able to solve this one, we first need to recall that square roots are the same as
one-half powers, and convert the radical to exponential form. Then we can solve the equation:
8x−2 =8
8x−2=81/2
x−2=21

8. Solve 2x = −4
Think about it: What power on the positive number ‘2’ could possibly yield
a negative number? A number can never go from positive to negative by taking powers; weI
can never turn a positive two into a negative anything, four or otherwise, by multiplying two
by itself, regardless of the number of times we do the multiplication. Exponentiation simply
does not work that way. So the answer here is no solution

SUMMARY
Dear Student Teacher,
We have learned that an index is a small number that tells us how many times a term has been
multiplied by itself.
We have also learned that:
• am × an = am+n.
• (am)×n = amn.
• am ÷ an = am-n.
• a0 = 1
• 1/a4 = a−4
• a1/2 = √a
We have also learned that under indicial equations, if the base numbers of any equation are
equal, then the power are equal & vice versa. The two main types are linear and quadratics
forms.
Kindly get more examples on these rules and practice to make yourself perfect.

75
UNIT 4 SECTION 5 TEACHING PRIME POWER FACTORIZATION
INTRODUCTION
Prime factorization is a process of factoring a number in terms of prime numbers i.e. the factors
will be prime numbers. Here, all the concepts of prime factors and prime factorization methods
have been explained which will help the students understand how to find the prime factors of a
number easily. The simplest algorithm to find the prime factors of a number is to keep on dividing
the original number by prime factors until we get the remainder equal to 1. For example, prime
factorizing the number 30 we get, 30/2 = 15, 15/3 = 5, 5/5 = 1. Since we received the remainder, it
cannot be further factorized. Therefore, 30 = 2 x 3 x 5, where 2,3 and 5 are prime factors. The first
few prime numbers are 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19 and so on. These prime numbers when multiplied
with any natural numbers produce composite numbers.
In this section, let us discuss the definition of prime factorization, different methods to find the
prime factors of a number and solve some practical problems.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate awareness of • Reflect and show how student-teachers’
socio-cultural issues in mathematics history influences their views
teaching and learning of learning prime factors.
Prime Factorisation • Identify appropriate TLMs for teaching
(knowledge) (NTS, topics in prime factorisation.
2f). • Make connections between prime
factorisation and applying them to solve
real-life problems in HCF and LCM.

76
Prime Factorisation
Prime numbers are those numbers which have two factors 1 and the number itself. For example,
2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, and so on. Thus, prime factorization means factorising the given as the
product of prime factors of that number. For example, Prime factorisation of 20 = 2 × 2 × 5
Note: All the factors in a prime factorisation must be prime.

Methods of Prime Factorization

The most commonly used prime factorization methods are:
• Division Method
• Factor Tree Method

Division Method
The steps to calculate the prime factors of a number are similar to the process of finding the
factors of a large number. Follow the below steps to find the prime factors of a number using
the division method:
• Step 1: Divide the given number by the smallest prime number. In this case, the smallest
prime number should divide the number exactly.
• Step 2: Again, divide the quotient by the smallest prime number.
• Step 3: Repeat the process, until the quotient becomes 1.
• Step 4: Finally, multiply all the prime factors

Example
Show a step-by-step process of prime factorization of 460
Solution:
• Step 1: Divide 460 by the least prime number i.e. 2.
• So, 460 ÷ 2 = 230
• Step 2: Again Divide 230 with the least prime number (which is again 2).
• Now, 160 ÷ 2 = 115
• Step 3: Divide again with the least prime number which will be 5.
• So, 115 ÷ 5 = 23
• Step 4: As 23 is a prime number, divide it with itself to get 1.
• Now, the prime factors of 460 will be 22 ×5 × 23

Factor Tree Method

To find the prime factorization of the given number using factor tree method, follow the below
steps:
• Step 1: Consider the given number as the root of the tree
• Step 2: Write down the pair of factors as the branches of a tree
• Step 3: Again factorize the composite factors, and write down the factors pairs as the
branches
• Step 4: Repeat the step, until to find the prime factors of all the composite factors
In factor tree, the factors of a number are found and then those numbers are further factorized
until we reach the closure.

Example
Find the factors of 60 and 282 using a factor tree method.

77
Solution:

In the above figure, we can number 60 is first factorized into two numbers i.e. 6 and 10. Again,
6 and 10 is factorized to get the prime factors of 6 and 10, such that; 6 = 2 × 3 and 10 = 2 × 5
If we write the prime factors of 60 altogether, then;
Prime factorization of 60 = 6 × 10 = 2 × 3 × 2 × 5
Same is the case for number 282, such as 282 = 2 × 141 = 2 × 3 × 47
So in both cases, a tree structure is formed.

Activity 5.1
1. Find the prime factors of 1240.
Solution:
Steps Prime Factors Product

Step 1: Divide by 2 2 1240 ÷ 2 = 620

Step 2: Divide by 2 2 620 ÷ 2 = 310

Step 3: Divide by 2 2 310 ÷ 2 = 155

Step 4: Divide by 5 5 155 ÷ 5 = 31

Step 4: Divide by 31 31 31 ÷ 31 = 1
∴ The Prime Factors of 1240 will be 23 × 5 × 31.

2. Find the prime factors of 544.

Solution:
Steps Prime Factors Product

Step 1: Divide by 2 2 544 ÷ 2 = 272

Step 2: Divide by 2 2 272 ÷ 2 = 136

Step 3: Divide by 2 2 136 ÷ 2 = 68

Step 4: Divide by 2 2 68 ÷ 2 = 34

Step 4: Divide by 2 2 34 ÷ 2 = 17

78
 Step 4: Divide by 17 17 17 ÷ 17 = 1
Therefore, the prime factors of 544 are 25 x 17.

3. Find the prime factorisation of 284

Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

284 = 142 × 2 2

142 = 2 × 71 2, 71
∴ Prime Factorisation of 284 = 2 × 2 × 71

4. Find the prime factorisation of 393

Solution:

Factors Prime Factors

393 = 131 × 3 2, 131

5. Find the prime factorisation of 7084

Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

7084 = 3542 × 2 2

3542 = 1771 × 2 2

1771 = 253 × 7 7

253 = 23 × 11 11, 23
∴ Prime factorisation of 7084 = 2 × 2 × 7 × 11 × 23

79
6. Find the prime factorisation of 5595
Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

5595 = 1119 × 5 5

1119 = 373 × 3 3, 373

∴ Prime factorisation of 5595 = 3 × 5 × 373

7. Find the prime factorisation of 23356

Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

23356 = 11678 × 2 2

11678 = 5839 × 2 2, 5839

∴ Prime Factorisation of 23356 = 2 × 2 × 5839

8. Find the prime factorisation of 50034

Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

50034 = 25017 × 2 2

25017 = 8339 × 3 3

8339 = 269 × 31 31, 269

∴ Prime Factorisation of 23356 = 2 × 3 × 31 × 269

9. Find the prime factorisation of 3487

Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

3487 = 317 × 11 11, 317

∴ Prime Factorisation of 23356 = 11 × 317

80
10. Find the prime factorisation of 18720
Solution:
Factors Prime Factors

18720 = 9360 × 2 2

9360 = 4680 × 2 2

4680 = 2340 × 2 2

2340 = 1170 × 2 2

1170 = 585 × 2 2

585 = 195 × 3 3

195 = 65 × 3 3

65 = 13 × 5 5, 13
∴ Prime Factorisation of 23356 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 3 × 3 × 5 × 13 = 25 × 32 × 5 × 13

11. Express 1080 as the product of prime factors.

Solution:

Thus, 1080 = 23 × 33 × 5
Therefore, the prime factorization of 1080 is 23 × 33 × 5

HCF and LCM Using Prime Factorization

To find the Highest Common Factor (HCF) and the Least Common Multiple (LCM) of two
numbers, we use the prime factorization method. For this, we first do the prime factorization
of both the numbers.
• HCF is the product of the smallest power of each common prime factor.
• LCM is the product of the greatest power of each common prime factor.

Activity 5.2
1. What is the HCF and LCM of 850 and 680?

81
Solution:
We will first do the prime factorization of both the numbers.
The prime factorization of 850 is: 850 = 21 × 52 × 171
The prime factorization of 680 is: 680 = 23 × 51 × 171

Observing this, we can see that the common prime factors of 850 and 680 with the smallest
powers are 21, 51 and 171, and the common prime factors with the highest powers are 23, 52,
171
HCF is the product of the common prime factors with the smallest powers. Hence, HCF of
(850, 680) = 21 × 51 × 171 = 170

LCM is the product of the common prime factors with the highest powers. Hence, LCM of
(850, 680) = 23 × 52 × 171 = 3400
Thus, HCF of (850, 680) = 170, LCM of (850, 680) = 3400

2. Find the lowest common multiple of 48 and 72 using prime factorization.

Solution:

The LCM or lowest common multiple of any 2 numbers is the product of the greatest power of
the common prime factors. Hence, LCM (48, 72) = 24 × 32 = 144
Therefore, LCM (48, 72) = 24 × 32 = 144

3. Show the prime factorization of 40 using the division method and the factor tree method.
Solution:
Let us use the division method and the factor tree method to prove that the prime factorization
of 40 will always remain the same.

82
Therefore, this shows that by any method of factorization, the prime factorization remains the
same. The prime factorization for a number is unique.

Activity 5.2
1. Find the highest common factor of 34, 42 and 58.
Solution:
Prime factorisation of 34 = 2 × 17
Prime factorisation of 42 = 2 × 3 × 7
Prime factorisation of 58 = 2 × 29
The highest common factor of 34, 42, and 58 is 2.
2. Find the lowest common multiple of 45, 75, and 125.
Solution:
Prime factorisation of 45 = 3 × 3 × 5
Prime factorisation of 75 = 3 × 5 × 5
Prime factorisation of 125 = 5 × 5 × 5
Lowest common multiple of 45, 65 and 125 = 3 × 3 × 5 × 5 × 5 = 1125.

3. Find highest common factor (HCF) of 14 and 8 by using prime factorization method.
Solution:
14 = 1 × 2 × 7.
8 = 1 × 2 × 2 × 2.
Common factor of 8 and 14 = 1 and 2.
H.C.F. is the product of lowest powers of factors common to all numbers.
Highest common factor of 8 and 14 = 2.

Find highest common factor (HCF) of 9 and 27 by using prime factorization method.
Solution:
9 = 1 × 3 × 3.
27 = 1 × 3 × 3 × 3
Common factor of 9 and 27 = 1, 3 and 3
Highest common factor of 9 and 27 = 3 × 3 = 9
4. Find highest common factor (HCF) of 6 and 16 by using prime factorization method.
Solution:
6=1×2×3
16 = 1 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2
Common factor of 6 and 16 = 2
Highest common factor of 6 and 16 = 2

5. Find highest common factor (HCF) of 18 and 24 by using prime factorization method.
Solution:
18 = 1 × 2 × 3 × 3
24 = 1 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 3
Common factor of 18 and 24 = 1, 2, 3
Highest common factor of 18 and 24 = 2 × 3 = 6

6. Find highest common factor (HCF) of 12 and 56 by using prime factorization method.
Solution:
12 = 1 × 2 × 2 × 3
56 = 1 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 7
Common factor of 12 and 56 = 1, 2, 2

83
Highest common factor of 12 and 56 = 2 × 2 = 4

6. Find the HCF of 108 and 132 by prime factorization method.

Solution:
108 = 2 × 2 × 3 × 3 × 3
132 = 2 × 2 × 3 × 11
Thus, the HCF is 2 × 2 × 3 = 12

Activity 5.3
1. List the common prime factors of 256 and 156.
Solution:
Prime factorisation of 256 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2
Prime factorisation of 156 = 2 × 2 × 3 × 13
The common prime factor of 256 and 156 is 2.

2. List the common factors of 152 and 76.

Solution:
Prime factorisation of 152 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 19
Prime factorisation of 76 = 2 × 2 × 19
The common prime factors of 152 and 76 are 2 and 19.

3. Find the least common multiple (L.C.M) of 9 and 15 by using prime factorization method.
Solution
Step I: Resolving each given number into its prime factors.
9 = 3 × 3 = 3².
15 = 3 × 5.
Step II: The product of all the factors with highest powers.
= 32 × 5 = 3 × 3 × 5 = 45.
Step III: The required least common multiple (L.C.M) of 9 and 15 = 45.

4. What is the least common multiple (L.C.M) of 16 and 28 by using prime factorization
method?
Solution:
Step I: Resolving each given number into its prime factors.
16 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 = 24.
28 = 2 × 2 × 7 = 22 × 7.
Step II: The product of all the factors with highest powers.
= 24 × 7 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 ×7 = 112.
Step III: The required least common multiple (L.C.M) of 16 and 28 = 112.

SUMMARY
Dear Student Teachers,
In this section, we have learned that:
• Prime numbers are those numbers which have two factors 1 and the number itself.
• Prime factorization means factorising the given as the product of prime factors of that
number.
• The most commonly used prime factorization methods are Division Method and Factor
Tree Method
• The HCF is the product of the smallest power of each common prime factor and the
LCM is the product of the greatest power of each common prime factor.

84
Have you made any new discoveries of prime factorization? Congratulations!

85
UNIT 4 SECTION 6 LOGARITHMS AND ITS APPLICATIONS
INTRODUCTION
Logarithms appear in all sorts of calculations in engineering and science, business and
economics. Before the days of calculators they were used to assist in the process of
multiplication by replacing the operation of multiplication by addition. Similarly, they enabled
the operation of division to be replaced by subtraction. They remain important in other ways,
one of which is that they provide the underlying theory of the logarithm function. This has
applications in many fields, for example, the decibel scale in acoustics. In order to master the
techniques explained here it is vital that you do plenty of practice exercises so that they become
second nature. After going through this section, we should be able to explain what is meant by
a logarithm, state and use the laws of logarithms and solve simple equations requiring the use
of logarithms.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND THEIR INDICATORS

Demonstrate value as well • Both tutors and student-teachers do individual
as respect equity and reflection on their knowledge of logarithms.
inclusivity as well as • Identify and reflect on core skills applied in
core skills in logarithm logarithms in the mathematics classroom.
classroom • Appreciate the contributions of, and supports,
(knowledge)(NTS, 2f) colleagues in logarithms.
• Cooperate with colleagues in carrying out
problems in logarithms.

86
The Concept of Logarithms
The logarithmic function is an inverse of the exponential function. It is defined as:
y=logax, if and only if x=ay; for x>0, a>0, and a≠1.
Natural logarithmic function: The log function with base e is called natural logarithmic function
and is denoted by loge or f(x) = logex

Laws of Logarithms
The logarithmic expressions can be written in different ways but under certain laws called laws
of logarithms. These laws can be applied on any base, but during a calculation, the same base
is used.

1. The Product Rule Law

The first law of logarithms state that the sum of two logarithms is equal to the product of the
logarithms. The first law is represented as; ⟹ log A + log B = log AB
Examples:
1. log25 + log24 = log2(5 × 4) = log220
2. log106 + log10 3 = log10(6 x 3) = log1018
3. logx + log y = log (x * y) = log(xy)
4. log4x + logx = log(4x * x) = log4x2

2. The Quotient Rule Law

Subtraction of two logarithms A and B is equal to dividing the logarithms.
⟹ log A − log B = log (A/B)
Examples:
1. log106 – log103 = log10 (6/3) = log102
2. log 2 4x – log 2 x = log 2 (4x/x) = log24

3. The Power Rule Law

⟹ log A n = n log A
Examples:
1. log1053 = 3log105
2. 2log x = log x2
3. log(4x)3 = 3 log (4x)
4. 5lnx2 = lnx (2 *5) = ln x10

4. Change of Base Rule Law

⟹ log b x = (log a x) / (log a b)
Example:
log 416 = (log 16) / (log 4).

Rules of Logarithms
Following rules needed to be remembered while playing with logarithms:
1. Given that an= b ⇔ log a b = n, the logarithm of the number b is only defined for positive
real numbers.
⟹ a > 0 (a ≠ 1), an > 0.
The logarithm of a positive real number can be negative, zero or positive.
Examples
1. 32= 9 ⇔ log 3 9 = 2
2. 54= 625 ⇔ log 5 625 = 4
3. 70= 1 ⇔ log 7 1 = 0

87
 4. 2-3= 1/8 ⇔ log 2 (1/8) = -3
5. 10-2= 0.01 ⇔ log 1001 = -2
6. 26= 64 ⇔ log 2 64 = 6
7. 3– 4= 1/34 = 1/81 ⇔ log 3 1/81 = -4
8. 10-2= 1/100 = 0.01 ⇔ log 1001 = -2

2. Logarithmic values of a given number are different for different bases.

Examples
1. log 9 81 ≠ log 3 81
2. log 2 16 ≠ log 4 16

3. Logarithms to the base of 10 are referred to as common logarithms. When a logarithm is

written without a subscript base, we assume the base to be 10.
Examples
1. log 21 = log 10
2. log 0.05 = log 10 05

4. Logarithm to the base ‘e’ is called natural logarithms. The constant e is approximated as
2.7183. Natural logarithms are expressed as ln x, which is the same as log e

5. The logarithmic value of a negative number is imaginary.

The logarithm of 1 to any finite non-zero base is zero.
0
a =1 ⟹ log a 1 = 0.
Example:
70 = 1 ⇔ log 7 1 = 0

6. The logarithm of any positive number to the same base is equal to 1.

a1=a ⟹ log a a=1.
Examples
1. log 10 10 = 1
2. log 2 2 = 1
3. Given that, x = log aM then a log a M = a

Solving Logarithmic Equations

Sometimes, the bases on both sides of an exponential equation may not be the same (or) cannot
be made the same. We solve the exponential equations using logarithms when the bases are not
the same on both sides of the equation. For example, 5x = 3 neither has the same bases on both
sides nor the bases can be made the same. In such cases, we can do one of the following things.
Convert the exponential equation into the logarithmic form using the formula bx = a ⇔ logba
= x and solve for the variable.
Apply logarithm (log) on both sides of the equation and solve for the variable. In this case, we
will have to use a property of logarithm, log am = m log a.
We will solve the equation 5x = 3 in each of these methods.
Method 1: We will convert 5x = 3 into logarithmic form. Then we get,
log53 = x
Using the change of base property, x = (log 3) / (log 5)

Method 2: We will apply log on both sides of 5x = 3. Then we get, log 5x = log 3. Using the
property log am = m log a on the left side of the equation, we get, x log 5 = log 3. Dividing both
sides by log 5,

88
x = (log 3) / (log 5)

Activity 6.1
1. Solve the exponential equation 73x + 7 = 490.
Solution:
490 cannot be written as a power of 7. So we cannot make the bases to be the same here. So
we solve this exponential equation using logarithms.
Apply log on both sides of the given equation,
log 73x + 7 = log 490
Using a property of logarithms, logam = mloga. Using this,
(3x + 7) log 7 = log 490 ... (1)
Here, 490 = 49 × 10 = 72 × 10.
So, log 490 = log (72 × 10) = log 72 + log 10 (because log (mn) = log m + log n)
= 2 log 7 + 1 (because log am = m log a and log 10 = 1)
Substituting this in (1),
(3x + 7) log 7 = 2 log 7 + 1
Dividing both sides by log 7,
3x + 7 = (2 log 7 + 1) / (log 7)
3x + 7 = 2 + (1 / log 7)
Subtracting 7 from both sides,
3x = -5 + (1 / log 7)
Dividing both sides by 3,
x = -5/3 + (1 / (3 log 7))
The solution of the given exponential equation is x = -5/3 + (1 / (3 log 7)).

2. Solve log 2 (5x + 7) = 5

Solution
Rewrite the equation to exponential form
logs 2 (5x + 7) = 5 ⇒ 2 5 = 5x + 7
⇒ 32 = 5x + 7
⇒ 5x = 32 – 7
5x = 25
Divide both sides by 5 to get
x=5

3. Solve for x in log (5x -11) = 2

Solution
Since the base of this equation is not given, we therefore assume the base of 10.
Now change the write the logarithm in exponential form.
⇒ 102 = 5x – 11
⇒ 100 = 5x -11
111= 5x
111/5 = x
Hence, x = 111/5 is the answer.

4. Solve log 10 (2x + 1) = 3

Solution
Rewrite the equation in exponential form
log10 (2x + 1) = 3n⇒ 2x + 1 = 103

89
⇒ 2x + 1 = 1000
2x = 999
On dividing both sides by 2, we get; x = 499.5

5. Evaluate ln(4x -1) = 3

Solution
Rewrite the equation in exponential form as;
ln(4x -1) = 3 ⇒ 4x – 3 =e3
But as you know, e = 2.718281828
4x – 3 = (2.718281828)3 = 20.085537
x = 5.271384

6. Solve the logarithmic equation log 2 (x +1) – log 2 (x – 4) = 3

Solution
First simplify the logarithms by applying the quotient rule as shown below.
log 2 (x +1) – log 2 (x – 4) = 3 ⇒ log 2 [(x + 1)/ (x – 4)] = 3
Now, rewrite the equation in exponential form
⇒2 3 = [(x + 1)/ (x – 4)]
⇒ 8 = [(x + 1)/ (x – 4)]
Cross multiply the equation
⇒ [(x + 1) = 8(x – 4)]
⇒ x + 1 = 8x -32
7x = 33 …… (Collecting the like terms)
x = 33/7

7. Solve for x if log 4 (x) + log 4 (x -12) = 3

Solution
Simplify the logarithm by using the product rule as follows;
log 4 (x) + log 4 (x -12) = 3 ⇒ log 4 [(x) (x – 12)] = 3
⇒ log 4 (x2 – 12x) = 3
Convert the equation in exponential form.
⇒ 43 = x2 – 12x
⇒ 64 = x2 – 12x
Since this is a quadratic equation, we therefore solve by factoring.
x2 -12x – 64 ⇒ (x + 4) (x – 16) = 0
x = -4 or 16
When x = -4 is substituted in the original equation, we get a negative answer which is
imaginary. Therefore, 16 is the only acceptable solution.

8. Solve log 6 (2x – 4) + log 6 (4) = log 6 (40)

Solution
First, simplify the logarithms.
log 6 (2x – 4) + log 6 (4) = log 6 (40) ⇒ log 6 [4(2x – 4)] = log 6 (40)
Now drop the logarithms
⇒ [4(2x – 4)] = (40)
⇒ 8x – 16 = 40
⇒ 8x = 40 + 16 or 8x= 56 or x = 7
9. Solve the logarithmic equation: log 7 (x – 2) + log 7 (x + 3) = log 7 14

90
Solution
Simplify the equation by applying the product rule.
Log 7 [(x – 2) (x + 3)] = log 7 14
Drop the logarithms.
⇒ [(x – 2) (x + 3)] = 14
⇒ x 2 – x – 6 = 14
⇒ x 2 – x – 20 = 0
⇒ (x + 4) (x – 5) = 0
x = -4 or x = 5
when x = -5 and x = 5 are substituted in the original equation, they give a negative and positive
argument respectively. Therefore, x = 5 is the only acceptable solution.

10. Solve log 3 x + log 3 (x + 3) = log 3 (2x + 6)

Solution
Given the equation; log 3 (x2 + 3x) = log 3 (2x + 6), drop the logarithms to get;
⇒ x2 + 3x = 2x + 6
⇒ x2 + 3x – 2x – 6 = 0
x2 + x – 6 = 0……………… (Quadratic equation)
Factor the quadratic equation to get;
(x – 2) (x + 3) = 0
x = 2 and x = -3
By verifying both values of x, we get x = 2 to be the correct answer.

11. Solve log5(30x – 10) – 2 = log5(x + 6)

Solution
log 5 (30x – 10) – 2 = log 5 (x + 6)
This equation can be rewritten as ⇒ log 5 (30x – 10) – log 5 (x + 6) = 2
Simplify the logarithms, log 5 [(30x – 10)/ (x + 6)] = 2
Rewrite logarithm in exponential form.
⇒ 52 = [(30x – 10)/ (x + 6)]
⇒ 25 = [(30x – 10)/ (x + 6)]
On cross multiplying, we get;
⇒ 30x – 10 = 25 (x + 6)
⇒ 30x – 10 = 25x + 150
⇒ 30x – 25x = 150 + 10
⇒ 5x = 160
x = 32

Activity 6.2
1. Evaluate the expression, log28 + log24
Solution
Applying the product rule law, we get;
log2 8 + log24 = log2(8 x 4) = log232
Rewrite 32 in exponential form to get the value of its exponent.
32 = 25
Therefore, 5 is the correct answer

2. Evaluate log3162 – log32

91
Solution
This is a subtraction expression; therefore, we apply the quotient rule law.
log3162 – log32 = log3(162/2) = log381
Write the argument in exponential form
81 = 34
Hence, the answer is 4.

3. Expand the logarithmic expression log3(27x2y5)

Solution
log3(27x2y5) = log327 + log3x2 + log3y5 = log3(9) + log3(3) + 2log3x + 5log3y
But log 3 9 = 3
Substitute to get = 3 + log 3 (3) + 2log3 x + 5log3y

4. Calculate the value of log√264.

Solution
⟹ log√264 = log√2 (2)6
⟹ log√264 = 6log√2(2)
⟹ log√264 = 6log√2(√2)2
⟹ log√264= 6 * 2log√2(√2)
⟹ log√264 = 12 * 2(1)
⟹ log√264 = 12

5. Solve for x if log0.1(0.0001) = x

Solution
⟹ log0.1(0.0001) = log0.1(0.1)4
⟹ log0.1(0.0001) = 4log0.10.1
⟹ log0.1(0.0001) = 4(1)
⟹ log0.1(0.0001) = 4
Therefore, x = 4.

6. Find the value of x given, 2logx = 4log3

Solution
2logx = 4log3
Divide each side by 2.
⟹ log x = (4log3) / 2
⟹ log x = 2log3
⟹ log x = log32
⟹ log x = log9
x=9

7. Evaluate log2(5x + 6) = 5
Solution
Rewrite the equation in exponential form
25 = 5x + 6
Simplify.
32 = 5x + 6
Subtract both sides of the equation by 6
32 – 6 = 5x + 6 – 6
26 = 5x or x = 26/5
8. Solve logx +log(x−1) = log(3x + 12)

92
Solution
⇒ log [x (x − 1)] = log (3x + 12)
Drop the logarithms to get; ⇒ [x (x − 1)] = (3x + 12)
Apply the distributive property to remove brackets.
⇒ x2 – x = 3x + 12
⇒ x2 – x – 3x – 12 = 0
⇒ x2 – 4x – 12 = 0
⇒ (x−6) (x+2) = 0
⇒x = − 2, x= 6
Since argument of a logarithm cannot be negative, then the correct answer is x = 6.

9. Evaluate ln32 – ln(2x) = ln4x

Solution
ln[32/(2x)] = ln4x
Drop the natural logs.
[32/ (2x)] = 4x
32/ (2x) = 4x.
Cross multiply.
32 = (2x)4x
32 = 8x2
Divide both sides by 8 to get;
x2 = 4
x = – 2, 2
Since, we cannot have the logarithm of a negative number, then x = 2.

Activity 6.3
1. Express 53 = 125 in logarithm form.
Solution:
53 = 125
As we know,
ab = c ⇒ logac=b
Therefore; Log5125 = 3

2. Express log101 = 0 in exponential form.

Solution:
Given, log101 = 0
By the rule, we know;
logac=b ⇒ ab = c
Hence, 100 = 1

3. Find the log of 32 to the base 4.

Solution:
log432 = x
4x = 32
(22)x = 2x2x2x2x2
22x = 25
2x=5
x=5/2
Therefore, log432 =5/2
4. Find x if log5(x-7)=1.

93
Solution:
Given, log5(x-7)=1
Using logarithm rules, we can write;
51 = x-7
5 = x-7
x=5+7
x=12

5. If logam=n, express an-1 in terms of a and m.

Solution:
logam=n
an=m
an/a=m/a
an-1=m/a

6. Solve for x if log(x-1)+log(x+1)=log21

Solution:
log(x-1)+log(x+1)=log21
log(x-1)+log(x+1)=0
log[(x-1)(x+1)]=0
Since, log 1 = 0
(x-1)(x+1) = 1
x2-1=1
x2=2
x=± √2
Since, log of negative number is not defined.
Therefore, x=√2

7. Express log(75/16)-2log(5/9)+log(32/243) in terms of log 2 and log 3.

Solution:
log(75/16)-2log(5/9)+log(32/243)
Since, nlogam=logamn
⇒log(75/16)-log(5/9)2+log(32/243)
⇒log(75/16)-log(25/81)+log(32/243)
Since, logam-logan=loga(m/n)
⇒log[(75/16)÷(25/81)]+log(32/243)
⇒log[(75/16)×(81/25)]+log(32/243)
⇒log(243/16)+log(32/243)
Since, logam+logan=logamn
⇒log(32/16)
⇒log2

8. Express 2logx+3logy=log a in logarithm free form.

Solution:
2logx+3logy=log a
logx2+logy3=log a [By logarithm rule: logab = b log a]
log(x2y3)=log a [By logarithm rule: log a + log b = log (ab) ]
x2y3 = a [If logma = logmb, then a = b]

94
UNIT SUMMARY
Dear Student Teacher,
In this unit, we learned the following sections:
1. Unit 4 Section 1 Concept of percentages and discounts
2. Unit 4 Section 2 Commissions and Depreciation
3. Unit 4 Section 3 Ratio, Rates and Proportions
4. Unit 4 Section 4 Teaching powers of numbers and indices
5. Unit 4 Section 5 Teaching prime power factorization
6. Unit 4 Section 6 Logarithms and its applications
Continue to explore more on the above lessons to equip your knowledge and competencies in
teaching and assessing JHS mathematics.
Thank you.

SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

1. Evaluate log464 + log416 and log314−2log35
2. Evaluate 2log35 + log340 – 3log310
3. Condense log24 + log25
4. Expand log3(xy3/√z)
5. Condense the expression 5lnx + 13ln(x3+ 5) – 1/2ln(x + 1)
6. Simplify loga28 – loga 4 as a single logarithm
7. Solve for the value of log58 + 5(1/1000)
8. Solve for x in the logarithm 3log52 = 2log5X
9. Rewrite log12 + log5 as a single logarithm

10. Solve:
(a) 3(22x + 3) – 5(2x+2) – 156 = 0
(b ) 92x+1 = (81 x-2/3x)

95