alleryStart learning →Two events are mutually exclusive. How do you find the chance that one or the other happens?
AAdd the two chances
BMultiply the two chances
CSubtract the smaller one
DDivide the larger by two
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. Add the two chances
1. The general rule for or takes the two chances, adds them, then removes the overlap.
2. Mutually exclusive events share no outcomes, so the overlap is zero.
3. With nothing to remove, the rule reduces to adding the two chances.
4. Multiplying is the rule for and when the events are independent, which is a different question.
_Source: OpenStax High School Statistics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 2 "Descriptive Statistics" and Ch 3 "Probability Topics", section 3.3 Two Basic Rules of Probability_
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