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What is the probability that the name of a state (of the United States) chosen at random begins with the letter "z"?

a) 0.04
b) 0.08
c) 0.12
d) 0.16

2 Answers

6 votes

Final answer:

The probability that the name of a state chosen at random begins with the letter 'z' is approximately 0.02 or 0.02%.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the probability that the name of a state chosen at random begins with the letter 'z', we need to determine the number of states that start with 'z' and divide it by the total number of states.

There is only one state in the United States that begins with the letter 'z', which is 'Zurisconsin' (a fictional state used for this example).

Therefore, the probability is 1 divided by the total number of states, which is 50.

So the probability is 1/50, which can be written as 0.02 or 0.02%.

User Marius Burz
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7.3k points
5 votes

Final answer:

The probability that the name of a randomly chosen state in the United States begins with the letter 'z' is 0.04.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the probability that the name of a state chosen at random begins with the letter 'z', we need to determine the number of states whose names start with 'z' and divide it by the total number of states in the United States. There is only one state, which is Zealand, that starts with the letter 'z'. The total number of states in the United States is 50. Therefore, the probability is:

P(Z) = 1/50 = 0.02

So, the correct answer is option a) 0.04.

User Catfish
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