ach of three friends flips a coin 87 times. The results for each friend are shown in the tables. Find the relative frequency for the event ​"tails​" for each friend. If the friends combine their results to get 105 heads and 156 ​tails, what is the relative frequency for the event ​"tails​"? Use pencil and paper. Suppose each friend flips a coin 870 times. Is there a value you would expect the relative frequency for the event ​"tails​" to be close​ to?

Friend 1
Outcome
Frequency
   Heads
28
   Tails
59
Friend 2
Outcome
Frequency
   Heads
40
   Tails
47
Friend 3
Outcome
Frequency
   Heads
37
   Tails
50
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Part 1
The relative frequency for the event ​"tails​" for Friend 1 is
  
enter your response here.
​(Type an integer or a decimal rounded to the nearest hundredth as​ needed.)

1 answer

To find the relative frequency for the event "tails" for each friend, we can use the formula:

\[ \text{Relative Frequency} = \frac{\text{Number of Tails}}{\text{Total Flips}} \]

Each friend flipped a coin 87 times, so the total number of flips for each friend is 87. We will calculate the relative frequency of tails for each friend.

Friend 1:

  • Tails: 59
  • Total Flips: 87

\[ \text{Relative Frequency for Friend 1} = \frac{59}{87} \approx 0.6764 \]

Rounding to the nearest hundredth:
0.68

Friend 2:

  • Tails: 47
  • Total Flips: 87

\[ \text{Relative Frequency for Friend 2} = \frac{47}{87} \approx 0.5402 \]

Rounding to the nearest hundredth:
0.54

Friend 3:

  • Tails: 50
  • Total Flips: 87

\[ \text{Relative Frequency for Friend 3} = \frac{50}{87} \approx 0.5747 \]

Rounding to the nearest hundredth:
0.57

Now, to combine the results of all three friends, we sum the number of heads and tails:

  • Total Heads: 28 (Friend 1) + 40 (Friend 2) + 37 (Friend 3) = 105
  • Total Tails: 59 (Friend 1) + 47 (Friend 2) + 50 (Friend 3) = 156

Combined total flips is: \[ \text{Total Flips} = 105 + 156 = 261 \]

Relative frequency for the event "tails" when all three friends combine their results:

\[ \text{Relative Frequency for Combined Results} = \frac{156}{261} \approx 0.5977 \]

Rounding to the nearest hundredth:
0.60

Final Expected Value After 870 Flips

If each friend flips a coin 870 times, we can reason that the relative frequency will tend toward the actual probability of tails in a fair coin toss, which is 0.5.

Thus, after flipping a larger number of coins (870 each), we would expect the relative frequency for the event "tails" to be close to 0.50.