On a shelf there are 60 novels and 20 poetry books. What is the probability that Person A chooses a novel and walks away with it and then Person B walks up shortly after and picks another novel?
The probability that Person A chooses a novel from the shelf is 60/(60+20) = 0.75.
After they take a novel, there will be 59 novels and 20 poetry books left on the shelf. The probability that Person B chooses a novel from the remaining books is 59/(59+20) = 0.747.
To find the probability that both events occur, we multiply the probabilities:
0.75 x 0.747 = 0.561975
So the probability that Person A chooses a novel and Person B chooses another novel after is 0.561975 or approximately 0.56.