How to solve how many sweets Hanna had?

This was a GCSE question in 2015. There are n sweets in a bag. 6 of them are orange, the rest are yellow. Hanna takes a random sweet from the bag and eats it. She then takes another random sweet and eats that as well. The probability she eats 2 orange sweets is 1/3. Show that n^2-n-90=0. Firstly we would right that out in a mathematical sense: (6/n)(5/n-1)=1/3 then simplify 30/n(n-1)=1/3. Next times each side by n(n-1): 30=1/3n(n-1) then times each side by 3 so 90=n(n-1). Next, expand the brackets 90=n^2-n. Finally take 90 away from each side so n^2-n-90=0 

CM
Answered by Callum M. Maths tutor

3708 Views

See similar Maths GCSE tutors

Related Maths GCSE answers

All answers ▸

How do i solve a system of 2 equations?


Find the angle z in the following triangle.


There are 12 counters in a bag. There is an equal number of red counters, yellow counters and blue counters in the bag. There are no other counters in the bag. 3 counters are taken from the bag. Work out the probability of taking 3 red counters.


Mike, Sam and James play football. Mike scores 8 more goals than James. Sam scores 5 more goals than Mike. Altogether they score 72 goals. How many did Sam score?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2025 by IXL Learning