There are n sweets in a bag. 6 of them are orange, the rest are yellow. Hannah takes a random sweet, she eats the sweet and repeats again. The probability that hannah eats two orange sweets is 1/3. Show that n2 - n - 90 = 0.

The best way to think approach question is thinking of it like a tree diagram.We know there are n sweets in total. Therefore the probability of eating 1 orange sweet the first time is 6/n.The probability of hannah eating a second orange sweet (baring in mind she's already eaten one) is 5/n-1The probability of Hannah having two sweets is (6/n) x (5/n-1) = 1/3Now we want to simply to get it in the given form30/n2-n = 1/3 (multiply the brackets)n2-n = 90 (multiply by the denominators)n2-n - 90 = 0

SN
Answered by Selina N. Maths tutor

3298 Views

See similar Maths GCSE tutors

Related Maths GCSE answers

All answers ▸

How do tree diagrams work? Consider: A bag contains 5 red counters and 3 blue counters. James draws a counter from the bag at random and keeps it. James then draws a second counter at random. What is the probability that James takes two red counters?


How do you find the volume of a conical frustum?


Solve the equation ((2x+3)/(x-4)) - ((2x-8)/(2x+1)) = 1. Give your answer to 2 decimal places.


Finding out the length of one side of a triangle


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning