Probability Theory: Shuffling a Deck of Cards

In summary, The sample space for shuffling a deck of cards and turning over the first card is the set of all 52 cards. The event of the first card being a heart has 13 possible outcomes, represented by {2h, 3h, ... 10h, Jh, Qh, Kh, Ah}.
  • #1
FrogPad
810
0
EDIT: Please disregard, or delete.
I got it.

Stumped on this question:
Shuffle a deck of cards and turn over the first card. What is the sample space of this experiment? How many outcomes are in the event that the first card is a heart?

Attempt at a solution:

[tex] D = \{ [/tex] deck of 52 cards randomly shuffled [tex] \} [/tex]
[tex] S = \{ x | x \in D \}[/tex]

I'm not sure if this is right. The event is viewing the the first card. So if we are viewing one card, all possible cards viewable at one time would just be one of the 52 cards right? Or does the sample space need for example:

S = {D-H2, D-H3, ... D-HA, D-***,}
Where D is the 52 cards. H2 would mean two of hearts, HA would mean ace of hearts. *** would mean all other card combinations.

Next part,
"How many outcomes are in the event that the first card is a heart"

Would I define the event as,
E_H = { D-H2, D-H3, ... , D-HK, D-HA }
D-H2 would mean the set that contains 51 cards without the two of hearts.

Thus the number of elements of E_H would be: 51^13


thanks in advance
 
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  • #2
You said you got it, but what you have there is not right? You should have only 13 outcomes (for the first card being a heart). The event space would just be {2h, 3h, ... 10h, Jh, Qh, Kh, Ah} where 2h = 2 of hearts, etc.
 
  • #3
mattmns said:
You said you got it, but what you have there is not right? You should have only 13 outcomes (for the first card being a heart). The event space would just be {2h, 3h, ... 10h, Jh, Qh, Kh, Ah} where 2h = 2 of hearts, etc.

Yeah, I should have pointed out that what I wrote down is not right.

I realized the problem was easier then what I was trying to make it out to be.
 

FAQ: Probability Theory: Shuffling a Deck of Cards

1. How many ways can a deck of cards be shuffled?

There are exactly 52! (52 factorial) ways to shuffle a deck of 52 cards. This number is approximately 8 x 10^67, or 80 unvigintillion.

2. What is the probability of getting a specific card after shuffling?

The probability of any specific card appearing on top of the deck after shuffling is 1 in 52, or approximately 1.9%. This is because each card has an equal chance of being on top after shuffling.

3. What is the probability of getting a certain combination of cards after shuffling?

The probability of getting a specific combination of cards after shuffling depends on the size of the combination. For example, the probability of getting a royal flush (10, J, Q, K, A of the same suit) is approximately 1 in 649,740, while the probability of getting any four of a kind is 1 in 4165.

4. Can a deck of cards be perfectly shuffled?

Mathematically, it is possible for a deck of cards to be perfectly shuffled, meaning that every possible arrangement of the cards is equally likely. However, in reality, it is nearly impossible for a deck to be perfectly shuffled due to the limitations of human shuffling techniques.

5. Does the order of shuffling matter?

Yes, the order of shuffling does matter. Each time a deck of cards is shuffled, the probability of each card appearing in a certain position changes. Additionally, the order of shuffling can affect the randomness and distribution of the cards.

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