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counting and probability senior
Problem
Many states use a sequence of three letters followed by a sequence of three digits as their standard license-plate pattern. Given that each three-letter three-digit arrangement is equally likely, the probability that such a license plate will contain at least one palindrome (a three-letter arrangement or a three-digit arrangement that reads the same left-to-right as it does right-to-left) is , where and are relatively prime positive integers. Find
Solution
Consider the three-digit arrangement, . There are choices for and choices for (since it is possible for ), and so the probability of picking the palindrome is . Similarly, there is a probability of picking the three-letter palindrome. By the Principle of Inclusion-Exclusion, the total probability is
Final answer
59