Here are the solutions to your problems:
1. A password consists of 4 letters followed by 3 digits. How many different are possible?
Step 1: Determine the number of choices for each position.
- For letters, there are 26 possible choices (A-Z).
- For digits, there are 10 possible choices (0-9).
- Assuming repetition is allowed for both letters and digits.
Step 2: Calculate the total number of possibilities for the letters.
- Number of choices for the 1st letter: 26
- Number of choices for the 2nd letter: 26
- Number of choices for the 3rd letter: 26
- Number of choices for the 4th letter: 26
- Total letter combinations = 26×26×26×26=264
Step 3: Calculate the total number of possibilities for the digits.
- Number of choices for the 1st digit: 10
- Number of choices for the 2nd digit: 10
- Number of choices for the 3rd digit: 10
- Total digit combinations = 10×10×10=103
Step 4: Multiply the possibilities for letters and digits to get the total number of different passwords.
Totalpasswords=264×103
Totalpasswords=456976×1000
Totalpasswords=456,976,000
The number of different passwords possible is 456,976,000.
2. In a group of 7 people, how many ways can a president and a vice president be selected?
Step 1: Identify the type of problem.
Since the positions (President and Vice President) are distinct, the order in which people are selected matters. This is a permutation problem.
Step 2: Define n and k.
- Total number of people (n) = 7
- Number of positions to fill (k) = 2 (President, Vice President)
Step 3: Use the permutation formula.
The formula for permutations is P(n,k)=(n−k)!n!.
P(7,2)=(7−2)!7!
P(7,2)=5!7!
P(7,2)=5×4×3×2×17×6×5×4×3×2×1
P(7,2)=7×6
P(7,2)=42
Alternatively, you can think of it as:
- Number of choices for President: 7 people
- After choosing the President, number of choices for Vice President: 6 remaining people
- Total ways = 7×6=42
The number of ways a president and a vice president can be selected is 42.