Skip to content

Both blue and green appear in four draws with replacement

Question

A box holds six marbles, each a different colour; one is blue and one is green. You draw a marble four times, returning it to the box after each draw. What is the probability that blue and green each appear at least once among the four draws?

Short answer

151648\tfrac{151}{648}. Use inclusion–exclusion on the complements: no blue has probability (56)4(\tfrac56)^4, as does no green, and neither has (46)4(\tfrac46)^4. So the answer is 1−2⋅6251296+2561296=3021296=1516481-2\cdot\tfrac{625}{1296}+\tfrac{256}{1296}=\tfrac{302}{1296}=\tfrac{151}{648}.

Adapted from QuantQuestions.io; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.

See the hint and the full worked solution in the question bank (free account).

Open the worked solution

Lessons behind this question

Start with a free lesson: Probability Fundamentals is part of a free topic. Create a free account, no card needed, to read it in full with worked solutions.

Read it free