To understand the probability of rolling an odd number on a fair six-sided die, let’s first identify the characteristics of the die itself. A standard six-sided die, often referred to as a number cube, has the numbers 1 through 6 displayed on its faces.
Out of these six numbers, the odd numbers are 1, 3, and 5. This gives us a total of three odd outcomes. The remaining numbers, 2, 4, and 6, are even.
The formula for calculating probability is:
Probability (P) = Number of favorable outcomes / Total number of possible outcomes
In our case:
- Number of favorable outcomes (rolling an odd number): 3 (the numbers 1, 3, and 5)
- Total number of possible outcomes: 6 (all the faces of the die)
Plugging these numbers into the probability formula, we get:
P = 3 / 6 = 1 / 2
This means that the probability of rolling an odd number on a fair six-sided die is 1/2 or 50%.
So, the next time you roll a die, you can confidently say that there’s a strong chance—half, to be precise—that you’ll land on an odd number!