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There are 32 possible pizzas. This result is equal to
We are presented with a sequence of choices. For each of the objects we have two choices: include it in the subset or not. So for the whole subset we have made choices, each with two options. So there are a total of possible resulting subsets, 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.
A set containing n distinct objects has subsets.
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?
We are looking for the number of subsets of a set with 4 objects. Substitute into the formula.
There are 16 possible ways to order a potato.
A sundae bar at a wedding has 6 toppings to choose from. Any number of toppings can be chosen. How many different sundaes are possible?
64 sundaes
We have studied permutations where all of the objects involved were distinct. What happens if some of the objects are indistinguishable? For example, suppose there is a sheet of 12 stickers. If all of the stickers were distinct, there would be ways to order the stickers. However, 4 of the stickers are identical stars, and 3 are identical moons. Because all of the objects are not distinct, many of the permutations we counted are duplicates. The general formula for this situation is as follows.
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 ways to order the stars and ways to order the moon.
There are 3,326,400 ways to order the sheet of stickers.
If there are elements in a set and are alike, are alike, are alike, and so on through the number of permutations can be found by
Find the number of rearrangements of the letters in the word DISTINCT.
There are 8 letters. Both I and T are repeated 2 times. Substitute and into the formula.
There are 10,080 arrangements.
Find the number of rearrangements of the letters in the word CARRIER.
840
Access these online resources for additional instruction and practice with combinations and permutations.
number of permutations of distinct objects taken at a time | |
number of combinations of distinct objects taken at a time | |
number of permutations of non-distinct objects |
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