On a store counter are exactly two boxes containing only purple marbles and yellow marbles. Box A has 30 purple marbles and 20 yellow marbles; box B has 15 purple marbles and 35 yellow marbles. If Melanie randomly selects one of the boxes and then randomly selects one marble from the box, what is the probability that the marble selected will be purple?
Choose the correct answer.
A) 3/20	B) 3/10	C) 9/20	D) 3/5	E) 9/10
We are given that box A has 30 purple marbles and 20 yellow marbles and that box B has 15 purple marbles and 35 yellow marbles. We need to determine the probability, when selecting one marble from the box, of selecting a purple marble. Since we have two boxes, A and B, there are multiple scenarios to account for when selecting the marbles. We must account for the probability of first selecting either box and then secondly for selecting a purple marble. Let’s start with Box A.   P(selecting box A) = ½   P(selecting a purple marble in box A) = 30/50 = ⅗   Thus, the probability of selecting a purple marble from box A is ½ x ⅗ = 3/10   Next we can determine the probability of selecting a purple marble from box B.   P(selecting box B) = ½   P(selecting a purple marble in box B) = 15/50 = 3/10   Thus, the probability of selecting a purple marble from box B is ½ x 3/10 = 3/20   Now we can determine the probability of selecting a purple marble from box A or box B:   3/10 + 3/20 = 6/20 + 3/20 = 9/20.   Answer: 9/20
<result>C</result>
On a store counter are exactly two boxes containing only purple marbles and yellow marbles. Box A has 30 purple marbles and 20 yellow marbles; box B has 15 purple marbles and 35 yellow marbles. If Melanie randomly selects one of the boxes and then randomly selects one marble from the box, what is the probability that the marble selected will be purple?