Name:____________________Date:_____________________Hour:_____________________

Experimental Probability vs. Theoretical Probability

The chart below shows all the possible colors of M&Ms and what percentage of each color is made by the Mars Candy Company. This also could be referred to as the theoretical probability. The theoretical probability is the expected number of favorable outcomes without using experimentation. An example of this is flipping a coin. It is expected that when I flip a coin, ½ of the time I would get heads, but this does not happen exactly ½ the time. The probability you find by conducting an experiment and collecting data is called an experimental probability. This happened when you opened your bags of M&Ms and found the actual number of each color inside.

Using the chart below, compare the theoretical probability listed to your actual results.

Theoretical Probability Experimental Probability

Why do you think the theoretical and experimental probabilities are different?

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