Child Probability

Biology Level 1

A couple has 5 biological children. All of them are sons. If the woman now gives birth to a sixth child, what is the probability that the sixth child will be a son?

Note: A version of this question appeared on the 1999 AP Biology Exam.

1 2 \frac{1}{2} 1 6 \frac{1}{6} 1 64 \frac{1}{64} 5 6 \frac{5}{6} 2 3 \frac{2}{3} 1 5 \frac{1}{5}

Owen Yin by Owen Yin , 23, Canada

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2 solutions

Owen Yin
May 10, 2015

Gender is independently determined. The probability that a child will be male is always the same regardless of the gender of previous children: 1 2 \frac{1}{2}

5 Helpful 0 Interesting 0 Brilliant 0 Confused
Katherine Duque
Jul 6, 2015

It doesn't matter how many times children have been conceived, nor does the frequency of gender. There will always be 1/2 a chance of their being either male or female. People that couldn't answer this must have some pathetic excuse for science drilled into their cerebellum.

2 Helpful 0 Interesting 0 Brilliant 0 Confused

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