The probability that a resident of a housing community opposes spending money for community
improvement on plumbing issues is 0.8. The probability that a resident favors spending money
on improving walkways given that the resident opposes spending money on plumbing issues is
0.85. Determine the probability that a randomly selected resident opposes spending money on
plumbing issues and favors spending money on walkways.
(3 points)



Answer :

Certainly! To determine the probability that a randomly selected resident opposes spending money on plumbing issues and favors spending money on walkways, we will need to apply the concept of conditional probability.

Firstly, let's define the two given probabilities:

- The probability that a resident opposes spending money on plumbing issues ([tex]\( P(A) \)[/tex]) is [tex]\( 0.8 \)[/tex].
- The probability that a resident favors spending money on improving walkways given that the resident opposes spending money on plumbing issues ([tex]\( P(B|A) \)[/tex]) is [tex]\( 0.85 \)[/tex].

We need to determine the probability that a resident both opposes spending money on plumbing issues and favors spending money on walkways ([tex]\( P(A \cap B) \)[/tex]).

According to the definition of conditional probability, we have:
[tex]\[ P(B|A) = \frac{P(A \cap B)}{P(A)} \][/tex]

Rearranging this formula to solve for [tex]\( P(A \cap B) \)[/tex], we get:
[tex]\[ P(A \cap B) = P(A) \times P(B|A) \][/tex]

Now, substituting the given probabilities into this equation, we calculate:
[tex]\[ P(A \cap B) = 0.8 \times 0.85 \][/tex]

Let's perform the multiplication:
[tex]\[ P(A \cap B) = 0.8 \times 0.85 = 0.68 \][/tex]

Therefore, the probability that a randomly selected resident opposes spending money on plumbing issues and favors spending money on walkways is [tex]\( 0.68 \)[/tex].

Other Questions