Compound Events

Suppose we roll a fair die and we wish to calculate the

probability that the number showing is 3 or higher.
To obtain a score of 3 or more, we could throw a 3, 4,5
or 6: that is, there are four ways of obtaining such a
score. When the die is rolled there are six possible
outcomes, of which four result in a score of 3 or more.
So,

P (obtaining a score of 3 or more) = 4/6 = 2/3

An event such as 'score 3 or higher' is an example of a

compound event.
 Complementary Events
Two events are complementary if one of them must happen
and, when it does, the other event cannot happen.

The events A and B are defined by

A: a score of 5 is rolled with a fair die
B: the box contains more than 10 components

State the complementary events, A and B.

Solution
A is the event: a score other than 5 is obtained
when the die is rolled.
B is the event: the box contains 10 or fewer
components.
Use of Tree Diagram to
Calculate Probability
Machines A, B and C make components. Machine A makes
30% of the components, machine B makes 50% of the
components, and machine C makes the remainder. Of those
components made by machine A, 93% are reliable, of those
made by machine B, 89% are reliable, and of those made by
machine C, 96% are reliable.

A component is picked at random. Calculate the probability

that it is
(a) made by machine C
(b) made by machine B and is unreliable
(c) made by either machine A or machine B
(d) reliable.