A university sends a monthly newsletter on health to its employees. One issue included a column called "What Is the Chance?" that said:
Chance that you'll die in a car accident this year: 1 in 75.
There are about 310 million people in the US. About 40000 people die each year from motor vehicle accidents. What is the chance a typical person will die in a motor vehicle accident this year????
To calculate the chance a typical person will die in a motor vehicle accident this year, we can use the information provided:
- The "Chance that you'll die in a car accident this year: 1 in 75" means the probability is 1 out of 75, or 1/75.
Next, we'll calculate the average number of deaths per person by dividing the total number of deaths in motor vehicle accidents by the population size:
- Total number of deaths from motor vehicle accidents per year: 40,000
- Total population in the US: 310 million
Average number of deaths per person: 40,000 / 310,000,000 ≈ 0.000129
So, the chance (or probability) that a typical person will die in a motor vehicle accident this year is approximately 0.000129, or 1 in 7,752 (approximately).
To determine the chance that a typical person will die in a motor vehicle accident this year, we need to calculate the probability based on the provided information.
First, we need to find the number of people who die in motor vehicle accidents per year out of the total population in the US. We know that about 40,000 people die each year from motor vehicle accidents and that there are approximately 310 million people in the US.
The chance or probability can be calculated by dividing the number of deaths (40,000) by the total population (310 million) and multiplying the result by 100 to convert it to a percentage.
Probability = (Number of deaths / Total population) * 100
Probability = (40,000 / 310,000,000) * 100
Now let's perform the calculation:
Probability ≈ (0.000129032 * 100) ≈ 0.0129%
So, the chance that a typical person will die in a motor vehicle accident this year is approximately 0.0129%.