Final answer:
To determine the number of different ways the prizes can be awarded, we need to use the concept of combinations.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine the number of different ways the prizes can be awarded, we need to use the concept of combinations. Since there are 40 people purchasing raffle tickets, and 3 winning tickets are selected at random, we can find the number of ways the prizes can be awarded using the formula for combinations:
C(n, r) = n! / ((n-r)! * r!)
Where n is the total number of items and r is the number of items chosen at a time. In this case, n = 40 and r = 3:
C(40, 3) = 40! / ((40-3)! * 3!)
= 40! / (37! * 3!)
= (40 * 39 * 38) / (3 * 2 * 1)
= 9880
Therefore, there are 9,880 different ways the prizes can be awarded.