Question

Sammy has set up a game with 9 colored straws, including 6 blue, 2 yellow, and 1 pink. When selecting a straw, he expects to pick a blue straw of the time.

After selecting and replacing a straw, he repeats this process nine times and records the results below.

Trial Number Outcome
1 blue
2 blue
3 blue
4 blue
5 blue
6 blue
7 pink
8 blue
9 blue

Which statement best explains why the results of his experiment did not match his expectations?
A.
He should have had 9 different people draw the straws.

B.
He performed too many trials.

C.
He really should not be able to draw a blue straw of the time.

D.
He did not perform enough trials.

Answer 1

Answer: C.

He really should not be able to draw a blue straw of the time.

Step-by-step explanation: The statement that best explains why the results of Sammy's experiment did not match his expectations is option C: He really should not be able to draw a blue straw all the time.

The probability of drawing a blue straw on any given trial is 6/9, which simplifies to 2/3, or approximately 0.67. However, this does not mean that Sammy will always draw a blue straw. Probability describes the likelihood of an event occurring, but it does not guarantee that the event will occur every time. In this case, it is possible for Sammy to draw a non-blue straw, even though blue straws are expected to be drawn more often.

Therefore, it is important to note that even if an event is expected to occur more often than not, it is still possible for the opposite outcome to occur. In this case, Sammy's results show that he did draw some non-blue straws, which is within the realm of possibility based on the probability of drawing a blue straw.