A medical test will be positive for 0.05% of people and negative for everyone else. Suppose a hospital will test 4000 patients each day. Use an appropriate approximation to find the probability that 5 people test positive tomorrow. (5SF)

Note that we have a constant probability, fixed number of tests, independent patients and only two outcomes, so we can write a binomial distribution X~Bin(4000,0.0005) where X is the random variable representing the number of patients who test positive.Use a Poisson approximation with L=np=2, so P(X=5) = ~(e^(-2)2^5)/5! = 0.036089

JM
Answered by John M. Maths tutor

3169 Views

See similar Maths A Level tutors

Related Maths A Level answers

All answers ▸

Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve y=4x^2 - 7x at x = 2


Does the equation x^2 + 2x + 5 = 0 have any real roots?


Differentiate (3x)e^(3x)


For the function f(x) = 4x^3 -3x^2 - 6x, find a) All points where df/dx = 0 and b) State if these points are maximum or minimum points.


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:

© 2026 by IXL Learning