We Got A Problem #13: The Birthday Problem

July 28, 2013 by Leave a comment

At my son’s recent 5th birthday party, he got 15 birthday cards.  Sure enough, he got more than one of the same card.

Suppose everyone buys their cards at Foyerjohn, and randomly picks one of the cards.  How many different cards would need to be on sale for there to be a 50% chance that all 15 people pick a distinct card?

Harder: how many different cards would need to be on sale for there to be a 50% chance that my son doesn’t get three of the same card?

Filed under We Got A Problem

About Bowen Kerins
Bowen is a mathematics curriculum writer. He is a lead author of CME Project, a high school curriculum focused on mathematical habits of mind, and part of the author team of the Illustrative Mathematics curriculum series. Bowen leads professional development nationally, primarily on how math content can be taught with a focus on higher-level goals. Bowen is also a champion pinball player and once won $1,000 for knowing the number of degrees in a right angle.

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