Question

read the story. marcy plays on her schools basketball team. the game her team is playing is almost over, and marcy is about to shoot 2 free throws. she needs to make them both for her team to win! if she makes her free throws 75% of the time, how likely is it that she will make both of them? which simulation could be used to fairly represent the situation? put 5 white shells and 15 orange shells in a bag. pick a shell, then return it to the bag, 2 times. each time an orange shell appears, it represents marcy making a free throw. use a computer to randomly generate 5 numbers from 1 to 100. each time a number greater than 75 appears, it represents marcy making a free throw. flip a coin 2 times. each time the coin lands on tails, it represents marcy making a free throw.

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate probability of making a free - throw

Marcy makes free throws 75% of the time. In the shell example, there are 5 + 15 = 20 shells. The probability of picking an orange shell is $\frac{15}{20}=\frac{3}{4}=75\%$.

Step2: Analyze computer - generated numbers

When generating numbers from 1 to 100, the probability of getting a number greater than 75 is $\frac{25}{100}=25\%$, not 75%.

Step3: Analyze coin - flipping

When flipping a coin, the probability of getting tails is $\frac{1}{2}=50\%$, not 75%.

Answer:

Put 5 white shells and 15 orange shells in a bag. Pick a shell, then return it to the bag, 2 times. Each time an orange shell appears, it represents Marcy making a free throw.