A die is thrown four times. The probability of getting a perfect square in at least one throw is
Show Hint
Whenever a probability question contains the phrase "at least one," always calculate the probability of the opposite "none" condition first. Subtracting the chance of total failure from 1 bypasses summing up multiple separate successful cases and leads straight to the answer.
Step 1: Understanding the Question:
A standard six-sided fair die is rolled exactly four independent times. We need to compute the probability of rolling a perfect square number in at least one of those four throws.
Step 2: Key Formula or Approach:
The phrase "at least one" indicates that we can solve this problem efficiently using complementary probability:
$$P(\text{At least one perfect square}) = 1 - P(\text{No perfect squares in any throw})$$
Since each die roll is independent, the probability of an event failing across all four attempts is simply the individual failure probability raised to the fourth power: $P(\text{None}) = [P(\text{Failure})]^4$.
Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Let's analyze the sample space of a single die roll: $S = \{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6\}$.
Identify the numbers in this set that are perfect squares:
• $1 = 1^2$ (Perfect square)
• $4 = 2^2$ (Perfect square)
There are exactly 2 perfect squares out of 6 possible outcomes. Thus, the probability of getting a perfect square on a single throw ($p$) is:
$$p = \frac{2}{6} = \frac{1}{3}$$
The probability of NOT getting a perfect square on a single throw ($q$) is:
$$q = 1 - p = 1 - \frac{1}{3} = \frac{2}{3}$$
Now find the probability of rolling zero perfect squares across all four independent attempts:
$$P(\text{No perfect square in 4 throws}) = \left(\frac{2}{3}\right)^4 = \frac{16}{81}$$
Finally, subtract this complementary value from 1 to find our target probability:
$$P(\text{At least one perfect square}) = 1 - \frac{16}{81} = \frac{81 - 16}{81} = \frac{65}{81}$$
This matches option (C).
Step 4: Final Answer:
The probability of getting a perfect square in at least one throw is $\frac{65}{81}$, which corresponds to option (C).