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In mathematics, a combination is a selection of items from a set that has distinct members, such that the order of selection does not matter (unlike permutations).For example, given three fruits, say an apple, an orange and a pear, there are three combinations of two that can be drawn from this set: an apple and a pear; an apple and an orange; or a pear and an orange.
Combinations and permutations in the mathematical sense are described in several articles. Described together, in-depth: Twelvefold way; Explained separately in a more accessible way: Combination; Permutation; For meanings outside of mathematics, please see both words’ disambiguation pages: Combination (disambiguation) Permutation ...
Finding the number N, using the formula above, from the k-combination (c k, ..., c 2, c 1) is also known as "ranking", and the opposite operation (given by the greedy algorithm) as "unranking"; the operations are known by these names in most computer algebra systems, and in computational mathematics. [2] [3]
One must divide the number of combinations producing the given result by the total number of possible combinations (for example, () =,,).The numerator equates to the number of ways to select the winning numbers multiplied by the number of ways to select the losing numbers.
Combinatorics is an area of mathematics primarily concerned with counting, both as a means and as an end to obtaining results, and certain properties of finite structures.It is closely related to many other areas of mathematics and has many applications ranging from logic to statistical physics and from evolutionary biology to computer science.
An archetypal double counting proof is for the well known formula for the number () of k-combinations (i.e., subsets of size k) of an n-element set: = (+) ().Here a direct bijective proof is not possible: because the right-hand side of the identity is a fraction, there is no set obviously counted by it (it even takes some thought to see that the denominator always evenly divides the numerator).
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This would have been the first attempt on record to solve a difficult problem in permutations and combinations. [4] Al-Khalil (717–786), an Arab mathematician and cryptographer, wrote the Book of Cryptographic Messages. It contains the first use of permutations and combinations, to list all possible Arabic words with and without vowels. [5]