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CsC 203 Discrete Structures Week 11

The lecture notes cover the fundamentals of discrete probability, including definitions of experiments, sample spaces, and events, as well as the calculation of probabilities. Key concepts such as conditional probability, independence of events, and Bayes' Theorem are explained with examples. Additionally, the document includes exercises to reinforce understanding of the material.

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2 views

CsC 203 Discrete Structures Week 11

The lecture notes cover the fundamentals of discrete probability, including definitions of experiments, sample spaces, and events, as well as the calculation of probabilities. Key concepts such as conditional probability, independence of events, and Bayes' Theorem are explained with examples. Additionally, the document includes exercises to reinforce understanding of the material.

Uploaded by

oyediranjoshua41
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Lecture Notes: Week 11 - Discrete Probability

CSC 203: Discrete Structures

1. Introduction to Discrete Probability

Probability is a measure of the likelihood of an event occurring. In discrete probability,


we deal with experiments that have a finite or countable set of possible outcomes.

2. Basic Definitions
• Experiment: An action or process that generates a set of outcomes.
• Sample Space (S): The set of all possible outcomes of an experiment.
• Event: A subset of the sample space.
• Probability of an Event (E):
|E|
P (E) = ,
|S|
where |E| is the number of favorable outcomes and |S| is the total number of
outcomes in the sample space.

Example: Tossing a Fair Coin

If you toss a fair coin, the sample space is S = {Heads, Tails}. The probability of getting
heads is:
1
P (Heads) = .
2

3. Properties of Probability
• 0 ≤ P (E) ≤ 1.
• P (S) = 1 (the probability of the sample space is 1).
• If E1 , E2 , . . . , En are mutually exclusive events, then:
P (E1 ∪ E2 ∪ . . . ∪ En ) = P (E1 ) + P (E2 ) + . . . + P (En ).

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4. Conditional Probability

The probability of an event A occurring given that event B has occurred is called con-
ditional probability and is denoted by P (A|B):

P (A ∩ B)
P (A|B) = ,
P (B)

provided P (B) > 0.

Example: Drawing Cards

What is the probability of drawing an Ace given that the card drawn is a Spade?

Solution:
1
P (Ace — Spade) = .
13

5. Independence of Events

Two events A and B are said to be independent if:

P (A ∩ B) = P (A) · P (B).

Example: Rolling Two Dice

If you roll two dice, the outcome of one die does not affect the outcome of the other.
Hence, the events are independent.

6. Bayes’ Theorem

Bayes’ Theorem provides a way to reverse conditional probabilities:


P (B|A) · P (A)
P (A|B) = .
P (B)

Example: Medical Testing

Suppose a test for a disease is 99% accurate, and 1% of the population has the disease.
Bayes’ Theorem helps calculate the probability that a person who tested positive actually
has the disease.

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7. Exercises
1. A fair die is rolled. What is the probability of getting an even number?

2. Two coins are tossed. What is the probability of getting at least one head?

3. If a card is drawn from a standard deck of 52 cards, what is the probability of


drawing a heart?

4. A jar contains 5 red balls and 3 blue balls. If a ball is drawn at random, what is
the probability that it is red?

5. A box contains 10 items, 3 of which are defective. If two items are selected at
random, what is the probability that both are defective?

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